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THE 



GOSPEL IN BURIAH; . 



TH E 

STOEY OF ITS INTRODUCTION 

AN D 

MARVELLOUS PROGRESS 

AMO N G 

THE BURMESE AND KARENS. 

BY 

MRS. MACLEOD WYLIE. 

NEW YORK: 
SHELDON & COMPANY, 115 Nassau Street. 

BOSTON: GOULD & LINCOLN. 
1860. 






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CONTEXTS. 



INTRODUCTORY. 

Sources of Information; Burman Geography; Government, Eaces, and Relig- 
ions of Burmah: the Karens and their Traditions; the Talaings; the Shans; 
Success of the Mission; Openings for the Gospel; Prayer needed. 

Pages 7-18 
CHAPTER I. 

Establishment of the American Board of Missions : the Missionaries reach India; 
Mission commenced in Rangoon; the first Convert, Moung Xau; unsuc- 
cessful Visit to Ava; first Burmese "War; heroism and death of Mrs. Jud- 
son. Pages 19-35 

CHAPTEE II. 

The first Karen Convert, Ko-tha-byu; Visit to the Karens of Dongyan; their 
Desire for God's Book; the Karen Alphabet formed; Karen Mission in Ta- 
voy ; singular Worship of an unknown Book; Labors, success, and illness of 
Mr. Boardman; Enquirers and Converts; Mr. Boardman's Death. 

Pages 36-52 

CHAPTER III. 

Arrival of Mr. and Mr3. Mason at Tavoy ; Mrs. Boardman's excellent schools; 
the Sgau Karens and their chief; Mrs. Mason's classes and schools; Mrs. 
Helen Mason's illness and death; her habits of devotion. Pages 53-66 

CHAPTER IV. 

Ko-thah-a, a distinguished Burman Convert, baptized and ordained; the Rangoon 
Mission re-established; translation of the Burman Scriptures; crowds of 
Visitors from the Interior; Mr. Wade at Mergui; Labors of Mr. Kincaid: 

(3) 



IV CONTENTS. 

his journey to Ava; Persecution of the Burman Converts in Pegu; Bap- 
tisms at Maubee; the Christian Governor of Bassein; enlargement of the 
Mission; Mr. Kincaid's Journey beyond Ava; his perils and deliverance. 

Pages 67-82 
CHAPTER V. 

The Mission in Arracan; its commencement and early growth; death and char- 
acter of Ko-thah-byu; Mr. Abbott at Sandoway ; immigration of Christian 
Karens, driven by persecution from Burmah; death of Mrs. Abbott; Akyab ; 
the Mountain Chief; trials of the Mission; Death of Missionaries; " Six 
Men for Arracan;" Review of the various Missions in Burmah. 

Pages 83-94 
CHAPTER VI. 

Illness of the Judsons; the Burmese Dictionary; Mrs. Judson's "Works; her 
Missionary Labors; Mrs. Judson's illness, voyage, and death; Dr. Judson's 
return; progress among the Kemmees; vain attempt to re-establish the 
Rangoon Mission; last illness, death, and character of Dr. Judson. 

Pages 95-108 
CHAPTER VII. 

Nomination of Native Pastors; Wah Dee; the village of Thay Rau; Native 
Labors; Pastors in Tavoy; Tavoy Association; its rules of conduct and of 
worship; Persecution in Pegu; Martyrdom of Thagua; Progress in Bas- 
sein; wonderful history of Myat Kyau; his labors, character, and death. 

Pages 109-127 
CHAPTER VIII. 

Return to Rangoon; Visit from a Priest; Trials of the Karen Converts; Visit to 
a Monastery; War with the English; conduct of the Governor; his con- 
sternation; message from the Commodore; the Governor consults Mr. Kin- 
caid; tyranny of the Governor; disorders in the city; arrival of the new 
Governor; the English deputation insulted; the King's ship captured: the 
English retire; Battle of the Stockades; interview of the Missionaries with 

Lord Dalhousie; Pegu annexed; Prospects of the future. 

Pages 128-151 

CHAPTER IX. 

The Tenasserim Provinces; Matah; a Sabbath at Matah; the teachers Klana and 
Kolapau; Mrs. Mason's journey to Longpung; thence to Chongquait and 
its heathen people; Visit to Palatot; discussions with the heathen; results 
of the journey. Pages 152-170 



CONTENTS. V 

CHAPTER X. 

Mr. Ingall's labors at Rangoon; progress there; a strange Blacksmith; numerous 
Converts; the History of Moung Shway Pau; his conversion and baptism; 
Ko-thah-a and Mau Sa; Peace under the English rule; Mr. Ingalls' last 
journey, illness and death; Losses in the Mission. Pages 171-194 

CHAPTER XI. 

Dr. Mason's first journey to Toungoo; the town of -Shwaygyeen; death of the 
first Mrs. Harris; the city of Toungoo; its important position; the Mission 
commenced; Visit from the Taubeah Chief; Thako Mosha; the Chiefs 
Verses; Visit from a Toungoo Lady; Conversation with her; Visits from 
other Ladies; their religious difficulties; their anxiety to learn; zeal of 
Shapau. Pages 195-211 

CHAPTER XII. 

The history of Sau Quala; his parents; his boyhood; his conversion; his Mother's 
conversion and death; residence with his brother; their earnest studies; 
his public profession; his first efforts for others; he is present at Mr. Board- 
man's death; studies under Dr. Mason and Dr. Judson; collects tbe Karen 
Traditions; and assists in tbe translation of the Bible; writes Karen books; 
his marriage; his preaching and discussions; his frequent journeys; be 
becomes a pastor ; progress among the Karens in the Tenasserim Province ; 
Dr. Mason's opinion of Sau Quala; Revivals at Pyeekhya and Newville; 
Quala is ordained; Story of Dumoo; Dumoo and Quala set off for Toun- 
goo; Quala's marvellous successs; his devoted labors; offer of Government 
employ; the offer declined. Pages 212-245 

CHAPTER XIII. 

Sau Quala and his assistants; earnest spirit of these native Missionaries; Mr. 
Whitaker at Toungoo; Mr. and Mrs. Harris at Shwaygyeen; Death of 
Mrs. Harris; remarkable progress at Toungoo; earnestness of the people; 
Pwaipau's success; Dr. Mason's return; jungle travelling; his visit to the 
mountain Churches; support of the native teachers; the Bghai Association 
of Churches; number of the Converts and their families; ability of the 
Preachers; extraordinary liberality of the Churches; marvellous progress; 
the Bghai tribes ; their ancient feuds ; the independent Bghais ; Border tribes ; 
Much land to be possessed; Sbapau's success; Mrs. Mason at Toungoo; the 
Female Normal School founded; its plan; the first scholars; letters from 



VI CONTENTS. 

the people promising to support it; lawlessness of the tribes; Quala's 
letter; letter to the American Churches; progress of the Normal School; the 
teacher Sauka; his visit to the Sgaus; lawlessness of the tribes; many 
become Christians; murders among them; blood -revenge; Pwaipau 
ordained in Toungoo; his history; enquiries of the young teachers ;Shapau 
ordained; wide doors of usefulness; Mrs. Mason visits the jungles; goes 
into the mountains; Mopgha house; timber collected; Christian village at 
Toungoo; Bghai public spirit; their improved manners; report of the 
Toungoo Mission for 1857; statistics; contributions. Pages 246-294 

CHAPTER XIV. 

Position of the Missionaries: Tavoy native Pastors; the origin of evil illustrated; 
a Karen convert; disappearance of the Priests; a Burman village: Maul- 
main; the Theological Seminary; the Karen Churches: Shwatgteen: 
Bassein; Report of the Karen Churches; their liberality; desire for the 
Bible; grounds of discouragement; the Burmans of Bassein; the northern 
Karens; native Missionaries sent to them: Henthada; progress made; 
native assistants; the Henthada . Normal School; increase of Converts: 
Pkome; conversion of a young Burman priest; general progress in the 
district: Rangoon; the Burman preacher, Moung-thet-nau; his conversion 
and baptism; death of Mr. Vinton; his numerous Churches; growth of the 
Mission; openings for usefulness, and his earnest appeals; his character, 
influence, and zealous labors; his last journey, illness, and sudden death; 
mourning of the Karens; conclusion; Apostolic preaching, plans, and pre- 
cedents, followed by Apostolic success. Pages 295-332 



THE GOSPEL IN BURMAH. 



I NTRODUCTORY. 

" For from the rising of the sua even to the going down of the same, 
my name shall be great among the Gentiles ; and in every place in- 
cense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering : for my 
name shall be great among the heathen, saith the Lord of hosts." — 
Mai. i. 11. 

The idea suggested by the New Testament, of a Mission 
to the heathen, has been in a remarkable degree realized by 
the American Mission to Burmah. Commenced in faith ; 
unaided by wealth or worldly power ; achieving its choicest 
victories, as well among the speculative Burmans as the 
unsophisticated Karens, by the simple preaching of the 
Gospel, and that mainly by native evangelists ; blessed in 
its progress by a succession of faithful believers, who pa- 
tiently fulfilled their course, not counting their lives dear 
unto them ; exerting a wide influence through the whole 
Christian Church by the example and the memory of its 
labors and its success ; this Mission has special claims to 
the sympathies and the love of the whole household of faith. 

Other Missions have been blessed too. Not in primitive 
times alone, nor in the succeeding darker ages when Chris- 
tianity in the forests of Germany, and amidst the din of war 
throughout Europe, won some of her noblest and least re- 
membered triumphs, but in modern times also, from the 



8 SOURCES OF INFORMATION. 

Missions of Eliot and Brainerd, of Ziegenbalg and Swartz, to 
those of Vanderkemp, Carey, and Martyn. In all these the 
Spirit of Grod worked variously according to the purpose of 
His will. By Him the laborers were prepared ; by Him the 
doors of entrance and utterance were opened ; by Him the 
word was made effectual to the saving of all who believed ; 
and at the present time He has still His witnesses and His 
agents, in a vast diversity of circumstances, with widely dif- 
fering gifts, occupying each one his allotted sphere of labor, 
" making increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in 
love " But it has pleased Him that in the work in Burmah 
His grace should be especially manifested, and His power 
felt ; that there, the Church might behold a prelude of that 
promised shower of blessing which shall redound through 
the thanksgiving of many to the glory of God. 

The history of this Mission lies scattered in the valuable 
memoirs of Dr. Judson, embodying the record of his first 
heroic wife ; in the delightful memoirs of Sarah Judson's 
peaceful, holy course ; in American periodicals ; in the Tract 
Society's " Karen Apostle ;" in Malcom's " South Eastern 
Asia ;" in Gammell's History of the American Baptist Mis- 
sion ; in the memoirs of Helen M. Mason and Boardman ; in 
the Rev. J. Baillie's recent work, " Rivers in the Desert," and 
other publications. But no where is there a connected narra- 
tive of the whole Mission. In the following pages an attempt 
has therefore been made to present a continuous, though not 
complete series of sketches, drawn not from those materials 
alone, but also from private information and records, ob- 
tained from intimate personal communication with several of 
the missionaries themselves. 

The Kingdom, or as it used to be called the Empire of 
Burmah, occupies a great portion of the immense peninsula 
of Farther India on the eastern side of the Bay of Bengal. 



GEOGRAPHY. 9 

Before the English conquests in 1826, it consisted of Bur- 
mah Proper, Cathay, Arracan, Pegu, Tenasserim, and the 
extensive country of the Shan Tribes. By those conquests, 
and the subsequent war of 1853, Arracan, Pegu, and Ten- 
asserim, with the entire sea coast of the country, have been 
incorporated into the British territory, and the kingdom has 
been humbled and shattered. The population, though nu- 
merous, probably amounting to tive or six millions in the 
entire country, is disproportioned to its immense extent, 
fertility, and resources. Two great rivers, the Irrawaddy 
and the Salween, with the Sitang and many other lesser 
streams, and the Yoma and other ranges of mountains, inter- 
sect the country. A large portion is covered with pathless 
jungle, and a great portion of the extensive plains is liable 
to inundation. The principal British settlements are at 
Akyab in Arracan ; Bangoon, Bassein, and Dalhousie, as 
ports of the Irrawaddy ; Shwaygyeen, Toungoo, Henthada, 
Prome, Thyat Myu, and Meaday in the interior of Pegu ; 
and Maulmain, Amherst, Tavoy, and Mergui in Tenasserim. 
The rapid progress of Tenasserim under the British rule, 
inspires the hope that all the British Provinces will form 
points of attraction to the population still under the King of 
Burmah, who feel that neither life nor property is secure ; 
and recent intercourse with the Bed Karens, and increasing 
intercourse with the Shans, will probably lead to an exten- 
sion both of British territory and of Christian missions. 

The Government of Burmah is a despotism, administered 
chiefly by inferior officers in different districts, with unscru- 
pulous and exacting cruelty ; but the present King's per- 
sonal influence appears to be beneficial, and his intelligence 
and mildness of character, render the continuance of peace, 
during his reign, probable. But other counsels may at any 
time prevail, and former scenes of revolution and civil war 
1* 



10 BUDDHISM. 

may be renewed. All such commotions will drive more 
emigrants into the British provinces, and the restless spirit 
of commercial enterprise while peace lasts, will carry fur- 
ther and further into Burmah up the Irrawaddy, probably to 
the borders of China, fresh disturbing elements. A recent 
splendid publication, (Capt. H. Yule's narrative of a Mis- 
sion to Ava in 1855,) opens to view the prospect of a rich 
country, destined, it may be, to amazing developments of 
future wealth and prosperity. But such lands abound in 
the glorious East, rich with boundless and undeveloped re- 
sources, stored to profusion with the choicest gifts of na- 
ture, and capable of sustaining innumerable myriads of the 
human family. 

The people of Burmah consist of various distinct races. — 
The Burmans, Karens, Peguans or Takings, and Shans, are 
the principal. Of these the Shans and the Red Karens live 
in a state of semi-barbarism. The principal exports of the 
country are rice, timber, silk, and lacquered ware. The 
principal cattle are buffaloes and ponies. Elephants are 
also very numerous and valuable. Of late years the demand 
for rice, especially from Arracan and Bassein (in Pegu,) has 
been so great, that a powerful impulse has been given to the 
mercantile spirit of the people : and silver, to the amount 
probably of not less than five millions sterling, has been 
imported within the last five years. 

The prevalent religion of Burmah, and the established 
religion of the court of Ava, is Buddhism, the faith alike of 
China, Siam, Ceylon, Thibet, and Tartary. Buddh is a gen- 
eral term for divinity, and not the name for any particular 
god. In this world, it is said, there have been four Buddbs 
or incarnations, the last of whom was Gaudama. One is yet 
to come, Arumaday. Gaudama was born about B. C. 626, 
having previously lived in four hundred millions of worlds, 



BUDDHISM. 11 

and passed through innumerable conditions in each. The 
narratives of his adventures in former states are preserved, 
and form a considerable part of the sacred books. He became 
a Buddh in the thirty-fifth year of his age, and remained so 
forty-five years, at the end of which time, having performed 
all kinds of meritorious deeds, and promulgated excellent 
laws, he obtained " nigban," that is, entered into annihila- 
tion. 

No laws or sayings of the first three Buddhs are extant, 
but those of Graudama were orally transmitted until about 
A. D. 94, when they were reduced to writing in Ceylon. — 
These are the only sacred books of the Burmans, and are all 
in the Pali language. The whole are called the Betagat. 

The sins which are to be avoided are described in a moral 
code consisting of five principal and positive laws : — 1. Thou 
shalt not kill. 2. Thou shalt not steal. 3. Thou shalt not 
commit adultery. 4. Thou shalt not lie. 5. Thou shalt not 
drink intoxicating drink. 

Of any Supreme God, or any eternal self-existent being, 
Buddhism affords no intimation ; nor of any creation or pro- 
vidence. Merit consists in avoiding sins, and cultivating 
virtues, and the reward of it is the sole hope of the Buddhist. 
He knows nothing of eternal life, anticipates ultimate anni- 
hilation, is ignorant of the doctrine of forgiveness of sins 
through an atonement, and of the gift of righteousness 
through faith. Antecedently to annihilation he anticipates 
a prolonged existence in various conditions and degrees of 
happiness, but his creed has practically little influence upon 
his moral, conduct. The Burmans generally are cruel and 
deceitful, and have made very slight advances in civiliza- 
tion, though generally endowed with singular acuteness and 
ingenuity. 

The origin of the Karens is still doubtful, and various 



12 KAREN TRADITIONS. 

theories have been propounded, based upon their remarka- 
ble traditions. They chiefly inhabit villages in the jungles 
and mountains, and notwithstanding all the power and op- 
pressions of the Burmans, they have for the most part main 
tained their independence, and lived apart as a separate 
people. Their traditions embody remembrances of the crea- 
tion, the deluge, and the promise of a deliverer. They speak 
of God in his sovereignty, unity and eternity, his perfection 
and holiness. They include a large portion of the moral 
law, and they minutely specify white messengers from the 
sea, and God's own book, as the means of their recovery, en- 
lightenment and salvation. Of these traditions some are 
given by Dr. Mason in the " Karen Apostle." They appear 
to be unexampled in the records of heathen nations, in these 
modern times, The following are striking specimens : 

THE CREATION AND FALL, IN VERSE. 

" In ancient times God created the world ; 

All things were minutely ordered by him. 

In ancient times God created the world ; 

He has power to enlarge, and power to diminish. 

God created the world formerly ; 

He can enlarge and diminish it at pleasure. 

God formed the world formerly ; 

He appointed food and drink. 

He appointed the fruit of trial ; — 

He gave minute orders. 

Satan deceived two persons ; 

He caused them to eat the fruit of the tree of trial. 

They obeyed not, they believed not God ; 

They ate the fruit of the tree of trial ; — 

When they ate the fruit of trial, 

They became subject to sickness, old age and death. 



KAREN TRADITIONS. 13 

Had they obeyed, and believed God, 

"We should not have been subjected to sickness ; 

Had they obeyed, and believed God, 

We should have prospered in our doings. 

Had they obeyed and believed Him, 

We should not have been poor." 

DISPERSION OF MEN. 

" Oh children and grandchildren !- men had at first one fa- 
ther and mother ; but because they did not love each other, 
they separated. After their separation they did not know 
each other, and their language became different ; and they 
became enemies to each other and they fought." 
" The Karens were the elder brother, 
They obtained all the words of God, 
They did not believe all the words of God, 
And became enemies to each other : 
Because they disbelieved God, 
Their language divided. 
God gave them commands, 
But they did not believe him and divisions ensued." 

RESURRECTION. 

" children and grandchildren ! you think the earth large 
The earth is not so large as the entada bean. When the 
time arrives, people will be more numerous than the leaves of 
the trees, and those who are now unseen will then be brought 
to view. my children, there will not be a hiding place 
for a single thing on earth." 

IDOLATRY. 

" children and grandchildren ! do not worship idols or 
priests. If you worship them you obtain no advantage there- 
by, while you increase your sins exceedingly." 



14: KAEEN TRADITIONS. 

LOVE TO ENEMIES. 

" children and grandchildren ! if a person injure you, 
let him do what he wishes, and bear all the sufferings he 
brings upon you with humility. If an enemy persecute you, 
love him with the heart. On account of our having sinned 
against God from the beginning, we ought to suffer." 

NATIONAL TRADITIONS. 

A people beloved of God. 
" children and grandchildren ! formerly God loved the 
Karen nation above all others, but they transgressed his 
commands, and in consequence of their transgressions we 
suffer as at present. Because God cursed us, we are in our 
afflicted state, and have no books. But God will have mer- 
cy on us, and again he will love us above others. God will 
yet save us again ; it is on account of our listening to the 
language of Satan, that we thus suffer." 

RETURN OF GOD. 

" At the appointed season God will come ; 

The dead trees will blossom and flower : 

When the appointed season comes, God will arrive : 

The mouldering trees will blossom and bloom again : 

God will come and bring the great Thau-thee ; # 

We must worship both great and small. 

The great Thau-thee, God created ; 

Let us ascend and worship. 

There is a great mountain in the ford, 

Can you ascend and worship God ? 

There is a great mountain in the way, 

Are you able to ascend and worship God ? 

How many evenings have you ascended to wor3kip Go:l ? 

* A mountain so called, which is to be the scat of future happiness, 
according to some statements. 



THE TALAINGS AND SHANS- 15 

You call yourselves the children of God, 

How often have you ascended to worship God ?" 

Such a people were prepared to "receive the Gospel with 
all readiness of mind. Their character was frank and manly, 
though intemperance and predatory habits had tended great- 
ly to debase them. 

Their numbers are uncertain, but it is believed that they 
extend far beyond Ava, and Mr. Kincaid traces an affinity 
between them and bordering tribes of China. Under the 
British Government, they have generally submitted to the 
establishment of law and order, and the warm sympathy of 
Major Phayre, the able Commissioner of Pegu, with this in- 
teresting people, affords the best guarantee that British au- 
thority, even when confided to the hands of Burinan subor- 
dinates, will not be perverted to their oppression in that 
province. They are divided into several tribes : the Red 
Karens, and the Sgaus, being the principal. The most im- 
portant other tribes, appear to be the Pwos, and the Bghais. 
All have distinct dialects, which seem at present to require 
somewhat various alphabets. 

The Peguans, or Talaings, long oppressed after their con- 
quest by the Burmans, became special objects of hatred af- 
ter the British forces unhappily withdrew from Pegu in 
1826, and left these people, who had manifested their friend- 
ly sympathy with them, to Burman vengeance. The subse- 
quent years, till the British annexation, in 1853, witnessed 
increasing severities, and the race is now greatly diminished. 

Among the Shans, no European settlement has been form- 
ed, and very little is known with certainty, of their numbers, 
or their habits. They frequently kidnap and carry shildren 
into slavery, and hitherto appear to have resisted even the 
approach of civilization. 

The habits and manners of the population of Burmah, gen- 



16 SUCCESS OF THE MISSION. 

erally, present a marked contrast to the customs of India, 
and singular facilities for the work of Missions. There is 
no hereditary priesthood like Brahmanism ; no anti-social 
system like caste, presenting a harrier to the introduction 
of every change ; and no seclusion of the female sex. Among 
the Burmans there is a considerable amount of intelligence 
and education, and the whole population is accessible to the 
Missionary. Intercourse is comparatively open and unre- 
served, and the people usually are peaceful and courteous ; 
but the Buddhist religion, with its monasteries, and gorge- 
ous temples, its gay processions, and festivals, strongly fas- 
cinates the popular Burman mind, and too commonly enthrals 
it with a fatal spell. 

Such is the sphere of labor, such are the hearers of the 
Gospel, we shall contemplate in the following pages. Of 
many of the hearers it certainly seems that the Lord has 
said, " This people have I formed for myself, they shall 
show forth my praise ;" and in many of the remote wilder- 
ness scenes of rugged beauty, where the Gospel has reached 
the untutored and unsubdued Karen, His message seems to 
have been as of old : " Let the inhabitants of the rock sing ; 
let them shout from the top of the mountains, let them give 
glory unto the Lord, and declare His praise," (Isaiah xlii. 
11, 12.) His word has been clothed with power, and lawless 
men have sat at the feet of Jesus, like children, to be nour- 
ished with the milk of truth, and have fed on it in the sim- 
plicity of their hearts. They have been touched, not by the 
superior learning or intelligence of their teachers, for very 
often the messengers of the Gospel have been men entirely 
like themselves, but by the story of the cross, and that alone, 
— by the first principles of the Gospel of Christ. This has 
fired their hearts, convinced their judgments, and directed 
their wills. Once, " thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, 



PRAYER FOR MISSIONS. 17 

extortioners, they are washed, they are sanctified, they are 
justified, in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit 
of our God. : ' (1 Cor. vi. 10, 11.) 

And what shall we say of those who have gone from Amer- 
ica to give their lives to this labor of love ? They have been 
" as a dew from the Lord in the midst of many people," 
(Micah v. 7.) And their fruit remains. But one after an- 
other has been taken away. Many hindrances have arisen. 
It has been God's will oftentimes to bring their usefulness 
to a close, and to work in other, and unexpected ways, that 
He alone might be exalted : " sealing up the hand of every 
man, that all men may see His work," (Job. xxxvii. 7.) 

This Mission then needs our prayers. It has been highly 
favored, but if the praises were to be given to man, and not 
to God, if pride were to take the place of humility, if God's 
Spirit were to be forgotten as the author of every good and 
perfect gift, soon, very soon, would Ichabod, " the glory is 
departed," be written as the inscription on its tomb. Rather 
let all the Church of Christ not only rejoice in the manifes- 
tation of God's gracious kindness to this Mission, but unite 
in prayer i that His Spirit may not be grieved, and that the 
beloved brethren in Burmah, may be blessed with that sin- 
gle eye which is full of light, and the gift of a holy and faith 
ful dependence upon the grace of Christ alone. 

Many and urgent are the calls for this prayer on behalf of 
Missions. The Missions in Burmah, in Tinnevelly, in Chota- 
Nagpore, in Turkey, and in Western Africa, seem to be full 
of promise that God is preparing to honor the preaching of 
His word in a new and remarkable manner: ■ And by the 
discoveries in Southern Africa ; by the approach of His her 
aids to Central Asia, at Peshawur ; and by the weakening 
of Mohammedan kingdoms, is not the Lord pointing to new 
fields of labor, and saying to His people, " Go forward ?" Is 
He not causing them to lay to heart the long desolations, and 



18 OPENINGS FOE THE GOSPEL. 

to yearn with lively sympathy over the lands of cruelty and 
darkness ? They see by far the greater part of this earth 
closed to the Gospel, and filled with violence, millions in 
slavery, the female sex degraded, and Satan worshipped 
under countless forms, by whole successive generations, and 
they cry : Lord, how long ? how long shall the wicked 
triumph ? Remember thy promises, the hopes and prayers 
of thy people, and do thou work for the glory of thy name, in 
thy faithfulness and truth ! Surely, if we thus continued 
pleading with Him, we should see the blessing which is now 
descending upon a few favored spots, widely extending 
through the earth, opening paths in the wilderness, and rivers 
in the desert, and bowing down the greatest obstacle of all, the 
heart of the proud and lofty. How swiftly and how soon He 
would fulfil the desires of our hearts we cannot tell, but as 
His ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts than our 
thoughts, there would be wonders wrought, such as we can- 
not imagine in these days of the " hiding of His power." 
For all the discoveries of modern times transcend all the 
conceptions of our forefathers, much more will the forth - 
putting of divine strength in the energy of love accomplish 
changes that will shame the feebleness of man. The great 
day of the descent of the Holy Spirit indicated in the con- 
version of three thousand, the mighty influence of divine 
grace : but greater blessings are promised, and on a wider 
scale the preaching of the glorious Gospel will be clothed 
with power. We see now only the first indications of those 
brighter days, but our children's children may witness re- 
sults, that will teach them at once to rejoice in our earlier la- 
bors, and to wonder at the weakness of our faith. Confident 
in these hopes let us not faint, but toil and pray on, joyfully 
serving our generation according to the will of God, and rest- 
ing on the promise, that " They who sow, and they who reap, 
shall rejoice together." 



THE FIEST AMEBIC AN MISSION ABY. 19 



OHAPTEE I. 



EABLT DAYS. 



" I kaow thy works : behold, I have set before thee an open door, and 
no man can shut it : for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my 
word, and hast not denied my name." — Rev. iii. 8. 

Nearly fifty years have passed away since a few young 
students, gathered from different parts of the country, met 
in the Seminary at Andover, Massachusetts, with hearts 
inflamed with the love of Christ, and with a burning zeal to 
make known His Gospel to the perishing heathen. "With 
some this sentiment had been the growth of years ; with 
others it had started into existence on reading Claudius 
Buchanan's sermon entitled "The Star in the East ;" but 
with all, the settled purpose of their lives was to obey that 
command of Christ, " Go ye into the world, and preach the 
Gospel to every creature." It was during a solitary ramble 
in the woods at the back of the college, with no eye but that 
of God resting upon him, that one of that little company 
came to the determination to obey that command. That 
one was Adoniram Judson, afterwards so distinguished as 
Ihe Missionary to Burmah, and it was from that little com- 
pany, that an Institution sprang, whose name has been asso- 
ciated with some of the noblest triumphs of the cross, the 
" American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions." 

Antecedently to this movement in America, the Church 
Missionary, London Missionary and the "Wesleyan Missionary 
Societies, had been formed in England ; and the Baptist 



20 THE AMERICAN BOARD OF MISSIONS. 

body had already sent out those pioneers of Missions in 
Bengal, Carey, Marshman, and Ward. The American Board 
was no sooner constituted, than it was considered expedient 
to send Mr. Judson to England, to endeavor to obtain the 
co-operation and assistance of the London Missionary Soci- 
ety. He was received with every mark of kindness by the 
Directors, but although they professed their entire willing- 
ness to assist with funds, until the American Board could 
raise sufficient for the support of their own missionaries, 
they wisely considered that separated as they were by the 
Atlantic, it would be impossible -to carry on the two Societies 
satisfactorily in conjunction. It was therefore decided on 
Mr. Judson's return to America . that he and Mrs. Judson 
should proceed at once in company with Messrs. Newell, 
Hall, Nott and their wives, and Mr. Bice, to Bengal, and 
from thence if practicable to proceed to Burmah, or any 
other field in India, which in God's providence was opened 
to them. It was on the 19th February, 1812, that the brig 
weighed anchor, which was to convey these devoted mission- 
aries to the land of their adoption. How evident it was 
that the Spirit of God had been working after the counsel 
of His own will, upon different individuals, and in different 
countries, preparing the way for those great missionary 
movements, which have since been the glory of both British 
and American Churches, and which will continue to grow* 
and increase, until the kingdoms of this world become the 
kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ ! 

Arrived in India, the little band of missionaries were 
received at Serampore, with true Christian- hospitality. 

The British government was at this time strongly opposed 
to the introduction of Christianity, and watched with jeal- 
ous eye any movement on the part of the Mission at Seram- 
pore. Upon the American missionaries presenting them- 



THE MISSIONARIES REACH INDL1. 21 

selves to the authorities, they were informed that they must 
without delay return to the United States. After many 
difficulties and disappointments, they secured a passage to 
the Isle of France. On the way thither Harriet Newell 
breathed her last, and Mr. Rice became so seriously ill, that 
it was deemed advisable that he should return to America ; 
Messrs. Hall and Nott proceeded to Bombay ; and at last 
of all that devoted band, who sailed with the message of 
divine mercy to Burmah, Mr. and Mrs. Judson alone remain- 
ed to land at Rangoon on the 13th July, 1813. Very touch- 
ing is the expression of their feelings at this time. "In- 
stead of rejoicing as we ought to have done, in having found 
a heathen land from which we were not immediately driven 
away, such were our weaknesses that we felt we had no 
portion left here below, and found consolation only in looking 
beyond our pilgrimage, which we tried to natter ourselves 
would be short, to that peaceful region where the wicked 
cease from troubling, and the weary are at rest. But if 
ever we commended ourselves sincerely, and without reserve, 
to the disposal of our heavenly Father, it was on this even- 
ing. " 

The Serampore missionaries had from the year 1807, 
sought to establish a Mission in Burmah, and like the ad- 
vanced guard, had prepared the way for those who followed. 
When the Judsons arrived at Rangoon, they were received 
by Mrs. Felix Carey at the Mission House, which was situ- 
ated in a retired spot without the walls of the city. Mr. 
Carey was at the time absent at the court of Ava. It was 
here that Judson commenced the study of the language, and 
the translation of the Scriptures, and the preparation of 
tracts. Mr. and Mrs. Hough joined them in 1816, with a 
printing press and fonts ; and in the following year Mr. 
Judson embarked for Chittagong, in the hope of securing 



22 A MISSION BEGUN IN RANGOON. 

the services of one of the native Christians as an assistant 
in preaching the Gospel to the people. During his absence, 
and when their minds were distressed by the intelligence 
that the vessel in which he had sailed had not been heard 
of at Chittagong, Mr. Hough was suddenly summoned to 
appear at the court house. There he was detained day after 
day, without knowing the charges preferred against him. It 
appeared afterwards, that he had been arrested upon sus- 
picion of his being connected with some Portuguese priests, 
whom the king had banished. To increase their anxieties, 
rumors reached them of an impending war between the 
English and Burmese Governments, and the cholera which 
for the first time had broken out in Rangoon, was accomp- 
lishing its fearful work around them. 

In these circumstances Mr. and Mrs. Hough resolved to 
go up to Calcutta, but Mrs. Judson clinging to the hope 
that her husband might yet return, remained at her post ; 
and before the ship had sailed with the Houghs to Calcutta, 
to the great joy of all, Mr. Judson returned, having encoun- 
tered great perils, from contrary winds and storms. 

This sketch brings us to one of the most interesting 
points in the history of the Burmah Mission. More than 
five years of preparatory work had passed away, and Mr. 
Judson in that time had not only made himself familiar with 
the language to a remarkable degree, but had prepared and 
published some portion of the Scriptures, and a tract briefly 
and clearly explaining the doctrines and duties of Chris- 
tianity, in the vernacular. Familiar teaching had been car- 
ried on to some extent in private, but no attempts had yet 
been made to carry out the message of God to the highways 
and crowded thoroughfares ; and it was to this, that Mr. Jud- 
son now determined to give his attention. 

In April, 1819, a zayat, a small low thatched building, was 



THE FIEST CONVERT. 23 

completed, and opened for this sacred and important pur- 
pose. It was built by the way side, on the road leading to 
the Great Pagoda, which is continually thronged by busy 
crowds. With what feeling must the missionary of the 
cross have first lifted his heart and hands in devotion 
beneath that roof, dedicating it to the service of the Living 
God ! From this time we began to notice a spirit of inquiry ? 
and on the 1st May, we have mention of Moung- Nau, the 
first Burman convert. He was a man silent and reserved by 
nature, and seems to have excited little hope or attention, 
but the grace of G-od had reached his heart, and had made 
him feel his exceeding sinfulness, and the preciousness of 
Christ's salvation. He was a poor man, obliged to labor 
for his daily bread, but he so hungered and thirsted after 
righteousness, that he counted all but loss, if he might win 
Christ. Not long after he became an inquirer, he had an ad- 
vantageous offer to go to Ava, in the employ of a boat- 
owner, but like Simon and Andrew, who left their fishing 
and their nets to follow Jesus, he determined not to leave 
those who would lead him in the way, where he might find 
Him. On the 27th June, 1819, on the Sabbath evening > 
after a simple service in the zayat, they proceeded to a tank 
in the neighborhood. An enormous image of Gaudama is 
upon the bank, and there Moung Nau was baptized in the 
name of the triune Jehovah. It was but a small beginning, 
but precious in the sight of Him " who taketh pleasure in 
His people, and will beautify the meek with salvation." 

Moung Nau became a valuable assistant to Mr. Judson, 
and through all the trials to which the Mission was after- 
wards exposed, he remained firm and steadfast, a faithful 
sojdier and a servant of Jesus Christ to the end. On the 
7th November of the same year, two more converts were 
baptized. Mr. Judson in writing of this event says, " No 



24: OTHER CONVERTS. 

wondering crowd crowned the over-shadowing hill. No 
hymn of praise expressed the exultant feelings of joyous 
hearts. Stillness and solemnity pervaded the scene. We 
felt on the banks of the water, as a little, feeble, solitary 
band. But, perhaps, some hovering angels took note of the 
event ; perhaps Jesus looked down on us, pitied and forgave 
our weakness, and marked us for His own ; perhaps, if we 
deny Him not, He will acknowledge us another day more 
publicly than we venture, at present, to acknowledge Him." 

From this time the tide of inquiry continued. Very 
interesting was the case of Moung Shwa Goung, a teacher 
of considerable distinction. He appeared to be half deist 
and half skeptic, a man of considerable powers, and very ar- 
gumentative. Even his proud heart and lofty intellect 
bowed to the supremacy of divine grace. His frequent 
visits to the zayat attracted the attention of the priests, and 
of the officers of the viceroy who reported him to their mas- 
ter. They were told "to inquire further about him." This 
had such an effect upon Moung Shwa Goung, that he ceased 
to visit the zayat, and many others also who had manifested 
considerable interest were afraid to do so any longer. 

This incident forced upon the missionaries the painful con- 
viction, that the disapprobation of the Government might, at 
any moment, blight the buds of fairest promise, and lay 
their hopes in the dust. They accordingly decided to go at 
once to the capital, and plead their cause with the Emperor, 
in the hope that they might at least secure toleration 
for themselves, and the converts to Christianity. 

At the close of 1819, Mr. Judson and Mr. Colman, who 
had joined the Mission in Eangoon, proceeded to Amarapu- 
ra, at that time the capital of the empire, taking with them 
the faithful Moung Nau as their attendant. After some per- 
plexing doubts as to the most suitable present for the Em- 



ME. JUDSON GOES TO AVA. 25 

peror, without which no unauthorized person could appear 
before him, they decided upon a Bible in six volumes, cov- 
ered with gold leaf, each volume enclosed in a richly wrought 
wrapper, wisely considering that their " holy book" was the 
most suitable offering for men in their circumstances. Mr. 
Judson writes : " The expedition on which we have entered, 
however it may terminate, is unavoidably fraught with con- 
sequences momentous and solemn beyond all conception. — 
We are penetrating into the heart of one of the great king- 
doms of the world, to make a formal offer of the gospel to 
a despotic monarch, and through him to the millions of his 
subjects. May the Lord accompany us, and crown our at- 
tempt with the desired success." The passage up the river, 
a distance of three hundred and fifty miles, was completed 
in rather more than a month, and the day after their arrival 
at the Burman capital, they presented themselves to the 
former viceroy of Rangoon, Mya-day-men, in the hope that 
they might interest him in their behalf. His wife had 
shown much kindness to Mrs. Judson, and they now promis- 
ed to use all their influence to obtain for them an audience 
of the king. The desired day at last arrived, and we can- 
not refrain from giving the account of the interview in Dr. 
Judson's own words — " January 27th, 1820. We left the 
boat, and put ourselves under the conduct of Moung Yo. He 
carried us first to Mya-day-men, as a matter of form ; and 
there we learned that the Emperor had been privately ap- 
prised of our arrival, and said, ' Let them be introduced.' 
We therefore proceeded to the palace ; at the outer gate we 
were detained a long time, until various officers were satis- 
fied that we had a right to enter, after which we deposited a 
present for the private minister of state, Moung Zah, and 
were ushered into his apartments in the palace yard. He 
received us very pleasantly, and ordered us to sit before the 

2 



26 INTERVIEW WITH THE KING. 

several governors and petty kings, who were waiting at his 
Levee. We here for the first time disclosed our character 
and object ; told him that we were missionaries, or ' propa- 
gators of religion ;' that we wished to appear before the Em- 
peror, and present our sacred books, accompanied with a 
petition. He took the petition in his hand, looked over 
about half of it, and then familiarly asked several questions 
about our God and our religion, to which we replied. Just 
at this crisis some one announced that the golden foot was 
about to advance ; on which the minister hastily rose up, 
put on his robes of state, saying that he must seize the mo- 
ment to present us to the Emperor. We now found that 
we had unwittingly fallen on an unpropitious time, it being 
the day of the celebration of the late victory over the Kath- 
ays, and the very hour when his majesty was coming forth 
to witness the display made on the occasion. When the'min- 
ister was dressed, he just said, ' How can you propagate re- 
ligion in this empire ? But come along.' Our hearts sank 
at these inauspicious words. He conducted us through va- 
rious splendor and parade, until we ascended a flight of 
stairs, and entered a most magnificent hall. He directed us 
where to sit, and took his place on one side ; the present 
was placed on the other ; and Moung Yo and another officer 
of Mya-day-men sat a little behind. 

" The sceme to which we were now introduced really sur- 
passed our expectation. The spacious extent of the hall, the 
number and magnitude of the pillars, the height of the dome, 
the whole completely covered with gold, presented a most 
grand and imposing spectacle. Very few were present, and 
those evidently great officers of state. Our situation pre- 
vented us from seeing the further avenue of the hall ; but 
the end where we sat opened into the parade, which the Em- 
peror was about to inspect. We remained about five min- 



INTERVIEW WITH THE KlXG. 27 

utes, when every one put himself into the most respectful 
attitude, and Moung Yo whispered that his majesty had en- 
tered. We looked through the hall as far as the pillars 
would allow, and presently caught sight of the modern Ahas- 
uerus. He came forward, unattended — in solitary grandeur 
— exhibited the proud gait and majesty of an eastern mon- 
arch. His dress was rich, but not distinctive ; and he car- 
ried in his hand the gold sheathed sword, which seems to 
have taken the place of the sceptre of ancient times. But it 
was his high aspect, and commanding eye, that chiefly rivet- 
ed our attention. He strided on. Every head excepting 
ours was now in the dust. We remained kneeling, our 
hands folded, our eyes fixed on the monarch. When he 
drew near we caught his attention. He stopped, partly turn 
ed towards us — ' Who are these V ' The teachers, great 
king,' I replied. 'What, you speak Bunnan — the priests that 
I heard of last night V ' When did you arrive V ' Are you 
teachers of religion ? ,; Are you like the Portuguese Priests?' 
' Are you married V These and similar questions we an- 
swered, when he appeared to be pleased with us, and sat 
down on an elevated seat, his hand resting on the hilt of his 
sword, and his eyes fixed intently on us. Moung Zah read 
the petition ; and it ran thus : — ' The American teachers 
present themselves to receive the favor of the excellent 
king, the sovereign of land and sea. Hearing that, on ac- 
count of the greatness of the royal power, the royal country 
was in a quiet and prosperous state, we arrived at the town 
of Rangoon, within the royal dominions, and having obtained 
leave of the Governor of that town to come up and behold 
the golden face, we have ascended and reached the bottom of 
the golden feet. In the great country of America, we sus- 
tain the character of teachers, and explainers of the sacred 
scriptures of our religion. And since it is contained in 



28 INTERVIEW WITH THE KING. 

those scriptures, that if we pass to other countries, and 
preach and propagate religion, great good will result, and 
both those who teach and those Avho receive the religion will 
be freed from future punishment, and enjoy, without decay 
or death, the eternal felicity of heaven, — that royal permis- 
sion be given, that we, taking refuge in the royal power, may 
preach our raligion in these dominions, and that those who 
are pleased with our preaching, and wish to listen to and be 
guided by it, whether foreigners or Burmans, may be exempt 
from Government molestation, they present themselves to 
receive the favor of the excellent King, the Sovereign of 
land and sea." 

" The Emperor heard this petition and stretched out his 
hand. Moung Zah was called forward and presented 
it. His Majesty began at the top, and deliberately read 
through. In the meantime I gave Moung Zah an abridged 
copy of the tract, in which every offensive sentence was cor- 
rected, and the whole put into the handsomest style and 
dress possible. After the Emperor had perused the peti- 
tion, he handed it back without saying a word, aud took the 
tract. Our hearts now rose to Glod for a display of his grace, 
' Oh, have mercy on Burmah ! Have mercy on her King !' 
But alas ! the time was not yet come. He held the tract 
long enough to read the first two sentences, which assert 
that there is one eternal God, who is independent of the in- 
cidents of mortality, and that beside him there is no Grod ; 
and then with an air of indifference, perhaps disdain, he 
dashed it down to the ground ; Moung Zah stooped forward, 
picked it up, and handed it to us : Moung Yo made a slight 
attempt to save us by unfolding one of the volumes, which 
composed our present, and displaying its beauty; but his 
majesty took no notice. Our fate was decided. After a 
few moments, Moung Zah interpreted his royal master's 



THEIR REQUEST REFUSED. 29 

will, in the following terms : ' Why do you ask for such 
permission ? Have not the Portuguese, the English, the 
Mussulmans, and people of all religions, fall liberty to prac- 
tice and worship according to their customs ? In regard to 
the objects of }^our petition his majesty gives no orders. In 
regard to your sacred books, take them away : his majesty 
has no use for them.' 

" Something was now said about brother Colman's skill in 
medicine, upon which the Emperor once more opened his 
mouth, and said, ' Let them proceed to the residence of my 
physician, the Portuguese priest ; let him examine whether 
they can be useful to me in that line, and report according- 
ly.' He then rose from his seat, strided to the end of the 
hall, and there after having dashed to the ground the first 
intelligence that he had ever received of the eternal God, 
his Maker, his Preserver, his Judge, he threw himself down 
on a cushion, and lay listening to the music, and gazing on 
the parade spread out before him." 

With hopes thus crushed and disappointed, they were 
hurried from the palace, and after some vain efforts to ac- 
complish their object, they determined to return to Rangoon, 
feeling that for the future, they could expect no help or 
countenance from man. In the weakness of their faith, they 
were almost tempted to abandon Burmah, and to seek some 
country where the government would be more favorable ; but 
God had other purposes, purposes of mercy to many in 
Burmah ; and the failing hearts of his servants were strength- 
ened by the young converts and inquirers, who, on hearing 
that they thought of leaving them, besought them with many 
prayers and tears to remain, and share their trials. It was 
finally arranged- that Mr. and Mrs. Colman should go to 
Chittagong, so that if the storm of persecution rose, the 
missionaries and converts might find a refuge there. The 



30 ENCOTLKAGEMENT IN RANGOON. 

Judsons remained at Rangoon, the solitary occupants of the 
mission premises, but surrounded day by day with some few 
earnest inquirers. Amongst them was the teacher Moung 
Shwagoung, who, with six others, was in a few months ad- 
mitted into the church by baptism, giving most satisfactory 
evidence of love to Christ and devotedness to Him. Thus 
things glided on more smoothly with the mission family, and 
all around began to wear a brighter aspect, when Mrs. Jud- 
son's failing health warned them that it would be necessary 
to seek its renewal in her native land, and that the bitterness 
of separation was before them. In vain the shorter voyage 
to Bengal was tried, and in August, 1821, she left the spot 
in which all her interests were centered, and in which her 
richest earthly hopes were treasured up. 

In December, 1821, Mr. Judson was joined by Dr. and 
Mrs. Price ; Mr. and Mrs, Hough also returned to Rangoon, 
and enabled him to carry on his work with renewed vigor. 
It was not long, before the knowledge of Dr. Price's arrival, 
and his skill as a physician, reached the Court of Ava, and 
he was summoned to the presence of the king. Mr. Judson 
was obliged to accompany him, and in one of their interviews 
was ordered to preach before his majesty, and had frequent 
conversations with the princes of the court, in which he had 
opportunities of commending Christianity to their notice . 
After spending several months at Ava, Mr. Judson returned 
to Rangoon to meet Mrs. Judson, who arrived there in De- 
cember, 1823, accompanied by Mr. and Mrs. Wade. After 
some consideration, it was determined that the Wades should 
remain at Rangoon, and that Mr. (now Dr.) and Mrs. Judson 
should proceed immediately to Ava, and availing themselves 
of the favor shown to Dr. Price's medical skill, endeavor to 
establish a mission in the Capital itself. IJow little did they 
then foresee the bonds and imprisonment which there await* 






SUFFERINGS OF THE ENGLISH. 31 

ed them, and which drew forth into action those qualities in 
the character of Mrs. Judson, which rendered her one of the 
most remarkable women of her time ! The war with Ens- 
land broke out in the beginning of 1824 : on the morning of 
the 10th of May the British fleet had penetrated up the 
Irrawaddy to within a few miles of Rangoon, and war was 
openly declared with Burmah. The first violence of the 
coining storm broke upon the helpless mission families at 
Rangoon. In vain they remonstrated, and urged that they 
had no connection with the British Government ; orders were 
issued for their arrest, and Mr. Hough and Mr. "Wade were, 
with all the other European residents, hurried off to the 
common prison. There, chained together, and under the 
charge of armed men, they waited with intense anxiety the 
result of the engagement. As soon as the firing commenced, 
the guards, panic-stricken, fled, and just as hope again re- 
vived, and they looked for deliverance, fifty Burmans enter- 
ed the prison house, stripped them of their clothes, and 
drove them to the place of execution. The dreaded moment 
had arrived. The executioner, with uplifted hand, stood 
ready for the signal, when Mr. Hough's voice broke the 
awful silence. It was in their own tongue that he entreated 
for a respite, and that he might be sent as the ambassador of 
peace on board the English frigate ; an assent was given, and 
tho rest of the unhappy prisoners were laden with irons and 
placed in confinement. The next day the English landed, 
and they were set free. The lives of Mrs. Hough and Mrs. 
Wade were, during all this time, wonderfully preserved. 
Insulted by the Burmans, compelled to conceal themselves 
in a little shed, exposed to a heavy fire of artillery, they 
were yet untouched, and rescued eventually by British offi- 
cers, and placed in a position of safety. A malignant fever, 
which broke out after the occupation of Rangoon by the 



32 

British, and carried off its thousands, attacked the mission 
family, and determined them as soon as they were sufficient- 
ly recovered, upon going to Calcutta, where they remained 
until the conclusion of the war. 

In the meantime intelligence of the fall of Rangoon had 
reached the court of Ava ; and the British Army under Sir 
A. Campbell, was steadily and victoriously advancing to- 
wards the Imperial capital itself. Dr. Judson and Dr. Price 
were amongst the first victims of Burman cruelty. They 
were thrown into a dungeon known by the name of the 
" death prison," and so secured that they were incapable of 
moving. 

It was now that the noble and heroic spirit of Mrs. Jud- 
son rose to the emergency. Feeble in health, but strong in 
purpose, she suffered no obstacle to daunt her' energies, or 
to stand in the way of pleading for freedom and relief. For 
a time she was not allowed to leave her house ; she was 
strictly watched and guarded, and exposed to cruel insults 
and extortions ; but at length she succeeded in presenting a 
petition to the governor, and by her earnest appeals to his 
sympathy, obtained the privilege of visiting the prisoners, 
and at last of erecting a little bamboo hut within the pre- 
cincts of the prison yard, in which for many months she liv- 
ed, preparing their food, and ministering to their wants. 
, Nine weary months rolled on, but there was no weariness 
in the service of love ; willingly, cheerfully was it rendered, 
but alas ! one morning the prisoners were gone. Was it to 
torture and to death ? 

The governor, who had some pity for the sufferings of 
Mrs. Judson, had summoned her to his presence, that she 
might be absent from the prison, while the prisoners were 
driven out, and thus be spared the agony of a separation he 
had no power to prevent. But was she to be prevented dis- 



PRESERVATION OF THE MISSI0XARIE3. 33 

covering their retreat ? In deepest admiration we follow 
her tracking their course, undaunted by the savage repulse, 
the fearful whisper, wending her solitary way by boat, or on 
the Burrnan cart, until at last she sank in the wretched village 
of Oung-j)en-la, overcome with fatigue, anguish, and disease. 
"Who can tell how great were the supports which her faint- 
ing spirit then received from Him who hath said, " I will 
not leave you comfortless V 

The prisoners had been thus hurried to Oung-pen-la, that 
they might be sacrificed in honor of Pakahwoon assuming 
the command of an army of fifty thousand men about to 
march against the English. By a remarkable interposition 
of God's providence, this awful catastrophe was prevented. 
The chief had been raised from a low condition to the rank 
of Woongye, but in the height of his power, and just as he 
was about to march at the head of his army, he was charged 
with treason, fell under the displeasure of the king, and 
was executed at an hour's notice. The fate of the mission 
aries was thus averted, and they were left uncared for at 
Oung-pen-la, when the near approach of the British army to 
the capital, induced the king to command the services of Dr 
Judson, as part of an embassy to the English camp with 
overtures of peace. The negociations were carried on en- 
tirely by the aid of Dr. Judson and Dr. Price. The release 
of the Christian prisoners was of course one of the con- 
ditions of the treaty, and on its conclusion the missionaries 
were once more free. So important were the services which 
they had rendered to the Burman Government, that they 
were solicited to remain, with the promise of advancement. 

Dr. Price was subsequently induced to accept the proposals 

of the king ; but Dr. and Mrs. Judson thankfully embraced 

the kind offer of hospitality from Sir Archibald Campbell 

and returned without delay to the British camp. We can- 

2* 



34 THEY RETIRE FROM RANGOON. 

not forbear giving in Mrs. Judson's own words, the descrip- 
tion of their departure from Ava. 

" It was on a cool moonlight evening in March (1826), that 
with hearts filled with gratitude to God, and overflowing with 
joy at our prospects, we passed down the Irrawaddy, surround- 
ed by six or eight golden boats, and accompanied by all we 
had on earth. We now for the first time, for more than a 
year and a half, felt that we were free, and no longer subject 
to the oppressive yoke of the Burmese ; and with what sen- 
sations of delight on the next morning did I behold the masts 
of the steam-boat — the sure presage of being within the 
bounds of civilized life ! We feel that our obligations to 
General Campbell can never be cancelled. Our final release 
from Ava, and our recovering all the property that had been 
taken, were owing entirely to his efforts. His subsequent 
hospitality, and kind attention to the accommodations for our 
passage to Rangoon, have left an indelible impression on 
our minds, and can never be forgotten." 

Dr. Judson, on their arrival at Rangoon, accompanied Mr. 
Crawfurd, the English Commissioner, on a tour of inspection 
through the district ceded to the British Government by the 
recent treaty. A site was fixed upon as the future capital 
of the English possessions in Burmah, and received the name 
of Amherst, in honor of Lord Amherst, who was then Gov- 
ernor-General of India. To this station Dr. Judson de- 
termined to remove his family, and there to unfurl the 
standard of the cross under the strong arm of British pro- 
tection. 

Soon afterwards, during Dr. Judson's absence at the court 
of Ava, whither he had gone as interpreter to Mr. Crawfurd's 
embassy, it pleased God to visit him with that affliction which 
so long clouded his heart and home. Mrs. Judson, whose 
constitution never recovered the shock it had sustained 



DEATH OF MRS. JUDSON. 35 

during her two years of suffering, sank under the effects of a 
remittent fever, and entered into rest on the 24th October, 
1826 ; as deeply mourned by the English residents at Am- 
herst, as by that little band of faithful Christians who had 
gathered round her. She was buried at Amherst. 

A single hopia tree marks the resting place of Ann Jud- 
son. Many a Christian traveller has visited that hallowed 
spot, and given thanks to God for the grace granted to his 
servant. On Dr. Judson's return to Amherst, he found his 
infant daughter fast fading away. She had been born dur- 
ing their captivity, and was now his only remaining treasure, 
but she had to be yielded up. " Even so, heavenly Father : 
for so it seemed good in thy sight." . 

" Oh ! who could bear life's stormy doom, 

Did not Thy wing of love 
Come, brightly wafting through the gloom, 

Our peace-branch from above ?" 



36 ARRIVAL OF MR. AND MRS. BOARDMAN. 



CHAPTEE II, 

EARLY DAYS WITH THE KARENS. 
" Sought out not forsaken." — Isaiah lxii. 12. 

It was at the beginning of 1827, that the Mission was 
strengthened by the arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Boardman from 
America, who joined the brethren at Amherst. This place, 
which had been originally selected as the seat of the British 
Government, was found to be inconveniently situated, and 
Sir Archibald Campbell determined to remove the head- 
quarters to Maulmain. We find therefore, in 1828, the mis- 
sionaries, Dr. Judson, Mr. and Mrs. Wade, and Mr. and Mrs. 
Boardman, settled there ; and the history of this period we 
shall give in a sketch sent us by Mrs. Wade, now .one of the 
oldest surviving members of the Burman Mission. 

" In Maulmain we had a boarding-school for Burman 
girls, and Dr. Judson had a bamboo zayat at the north end 
of the town, while Mr. Wade had a similar one at the south 
end, where they spent the greatest part of every day in the 
week, excepting Sunday, when we had regular worship in 
the Burman language, in the bamboo chapel near our own 
dwelling. Every evening in the week was devoted to the 
exposition of the Scriptures, and familiar conversation, for 
the benefit of the church-members, school girls, and any 
others who chose to attend. At that time the Karens were 
known only as tribes, more or less savage, inhabiting the 
mountains and valleys of the interior of Burmah. The few 



THE FIRST KAREN CONVERT. 37 

Burman converts had, however, heard their missionary 
teachers express a wish to become acquainted with them, 
and finding one who was a debtor slave to a Burman, Ko- 
shwa-ba paid the small debt, and took him into his family. 
He proved, by being excessively rude and passionate, a very 
unpleasant accession to that Christian family, and though he 
gave some attention to the ' new religion,' Ko-shwa-ba felt 
constrained to put him away. This was the embryo " Karen 
Apostle." Dr. Judson, who was then a member of our 
family, proposed to pay Ko-shwa-ba the debt of poor Ko- 
thah-byu, if we would find employment for him, so that he 
might receive farther instruction ; and it was not long after 
he came to live in our compound, that we began to perceive 
the influence of religion on his outward character, and that, 
by slow degrees, light dawned upon his dark mind, and the 
work of the Holy Spirit became perceptible on his hard 
heart. He seemed deeply penitent and confessed his sins, 
and sought earnestly by prayer, the pardon of sin, and re- 
conciliation to God through our Saviour. lb was to us a 
cause of deep interest, but when he expressed a wish to 
receive the ordinance of baptism, the members of the little 
Burman church who had not had the same opportunity of 
seeing the great change, both outward and internal, in this 
poor Karen, were slow to perceive that he was fit to be ad- 
mitted into their church. And when at last he was cordially 
received by a vote of every member, and was to have been 
baptized the next Sunday, it happened to be the week that 
Mr. Boardman and family were leaving us for Tavoy ; and 
they, wishing to take with them two little Karen orphan 
boys, who had been admitted into their school, could not in- 
duce them to go without their sister, who had lately been 
married to Ko-thah-byu. He therefore consented to go with 
his family to Tavoy, where he was soon baptized by Mr. 



38 FIRST VISIT TO THE KARENS. 

Boardman. Ko-thah-byu could speak Burman, and while 
with us learned to read that language, so that an excellent 
Catechism, written by the first Mrs. Judson, was his con- 
stant companion, and though his knowledge did not extend 
much beyond the contents of his little book, yet with the 
Holy Spirit's aid, he went forth and performed a great work. 
This was the ' first-fruits unto God' of the Karen Mission, 
whose churches now number some 14,000 regular communi- 
cants, while the nominal worshippers, and the readers of the 
blessed Bible, may be numbered by tens of thousands. 
While, however, this first Karen convert was yet on his way 
to Tavoy, Dr. Judson baptized a very respectable and intel- 
ligent Burman, by the name of Ko-myat-kyau, brother to the 
chief native Magistrate of Maulmain, who had formerly 
been Governor of Shwaygyeen, under the Burmese Govern- 
ment. When this brother was Collector of Customs among 
the numerous Karens of that province, he became familiar 
with their language, customs, &c. After his conversion, Ko- 
myat-kyau's mind reverted with deep interest to the Karens, 
and he often assured us that they would receive the gospel 
much more readily than the Burmans." 

Mr. Wade says, " My impressions on this point were so 
strong that, with the advice of Dr. Judson, I set out with 
him, and two or three other Burman converts ; to visit a 
Karen village at Dongyan, about twenty miles north of 
Maulmain. On our arrival every man, woman, and child 
had deserted their dwellings, and hid themselves in the 
jungle. We sat down in the shade of their houses, and 
after some time one or two of the men summoned courage to 
shew themselves, and ask our object in coming to their vil- 
lage. Ko-myat-kyau told them our only object was to tell 
.them about the true God, and the way of salvation. • Oh, 
is that your object V they replied, ' we thought you were 






39 

Government Officials, and we were afraid ; but if you are 
religious teachers, ccnie to tell us of God, we are happy ; we 
will listen ; — Have you brought God's book ? Our fathers 
say : the Karens once had God's Book written on leather 
(parchment,) and they carelessly allowed it to be destroyed. 
Since then, as a punishment, we have been without books 
and without a written language. But our prophets say, the 
white foreigners have the book, and will in future time re- 
store it to us. Behold, the white foreigners have come, as 
our prophets foretold ! Have you brought God's Book ?' 
(few of these simple villagers had seen a " white foreigner.") 
I replied, Yes, we have brought the Book of God, (shewing 
them a Bible) but it is in the language of the foreigners, 
though parts of it have been translated into the language of 
the Burmans. Can you read Burman ? ' No, we cannot ; 
you must translate it for us, as you have for the Burmans.' 
By this time the villagers generally had learned our object 
in coming, and ventured out of their hiding places, so that 
we had a large company of men and women and children 
around us ; some eagerly examining my strange dress ; 
others astonished at the whiteness of my face ; but more 
still, intent on hearing what I had to say about the Book of 
God, which they had so long expected the white foreigners 
to bring them. To their last request, I replied, ' I came 
from the land of the foreigners, to teach the Burmans the 
true religion. I have learned their language, but I do not 
understand Karen. I am obliged to speak to you through 
an interpreter ; but I will write to those who sent me out, 
to send a teacher for the Karens, who will study your lan- 
guage, reduce it to writing, and translate God's Word for 
you, if on your part you will agree to learn to read, and let 
your children learn ;. else the labor and expense will be lost. 
Will the Karens do it ?' ' Yes, we will, and we will worship 



40 THE KAREN ALPHABET. 

God, when we are taught his requirements. Our fathers 
have told that when the white foreigners bring us the lost 
Book, and teach us the true religion, we must listen and 
obey, then prosperity will return to us : but if we do not 
listen and obey, we shall perish without remedy. Long 
have we suffered, and prayed for deliverance, and now that 
the white foreigner has come with the lost word of God, ac- 
cording to the saying of the fathers, if we do not listen, we 
know that the threatening also will be fulfilled. Yes, we 
will listen and obey ; but how long will it take for a teacher 
to come, learn our language, reduce it to writing, and trans- 
late for us the Book of God V I said I thought it could be 
accomplished in ten'years. ' Alas ! it will not then be done 
in my day,' exclaimed a man who had nearly completed his 
three- score years and ten. ' But you must not wait for a 
new teacher, you must begin at once.' Mauy others joined 
in this request ; but I could not then say, I will ; for the 
idea of becoming a Karen Missionary had not yet occurred 
to my mind ; my hands were full of work in the Burman 
department, and thirty converts were baptized and added to 
the Burman church in Maulmain, during that year. 

" The Karen Chief, who had taken the lead in this con- 
versation, invited us to his house, where we remained two 
weeks, teaching those who came to us, from all the region 
around. We were treated with great cordiality, as well as 
respect, but the Chief was cautious about committing him- 
self to the cause of Christianity, until he knew more about 
it. His wife, however, imbibed at once a full conviction of 
the truth of what she heard, and she obtained the ' Pearl of 
great price.' From the labor of others in after years, this 
village became one of the most interesting stations of the 
Maulmain Karen Mission. Before leaving the Karens, I 
made some attempts to represent the Karen sounds by Bur- 






THE KAREN ALPHABET. 41 

man characters, which I found entirely impracticable. On 
returning home, though I had no idea of attempting the 
work of reducing the Karen language to writing, my mind 
had received an impulse which led me on from step to step, 
though often interrupted for months, until with the aid of 
two Karens who understood Burman, I had analysed and 
classified the Karen sounds, and adopted a system of repre- 
senting them, which embraced all the syllables occurring in 
their language. This work, strange as it may seem to others, 
as it does indeed to myself, was accomplished before I could' 
speak a sentence in Karen ; God gave the ability, and to Him 
be the praise. I adopted the Burman Alphabet, giving the 
characters a new sound so far as necessary ; for the simple 
reason, that we had Burman type and no other in the printing 
office at the time, and its adoption would save expense and 
delay in printing. The inadequacy of the Burman alphabet 
to represent all the sounds in Karen, will be perceived by 
the single remark, that the Burman contains but ten vowel 
sounds while the Karen has fifty-four. A few new types, 
however, met the difficulty, and considering the ease with 
which the Karens learn to write, without instruction, I think 
no one regrets the adoption of the Burman character for the 
Karen language. In the prosecution of this interesting 
work, my mind became involuntarily absorbed, both while 
sleeping and waking, and having long suffered from liver 
complaint, my health failed, so that I was obliged to return 
to my native land for a season : not, however, until I had 
made many excursions among the Karen villages, received 
many visits in return, and had seen the happy result in four- 
teen baptized Karens, two or three of whom gave promise 
of becoming preachers of the gospel to their dark country- 
men. The Spelling-book and Mrs. Judson's Catechism, had 
been printed in Karen, and a Karen school opened in Maul- 



4:2 FIRST KAREN BOOKS. 

main, which was left in the care of Dr. Judson. He likewise 
visited the Karen villages, and looked after the ' little flock,' 
as far as his numerous duties in the Burman department 
would permit, so that the good work went forward. The 
news of Books in the Karen language spread rapidly 
through the Karen villages, and brought many visitors ( to 
the school, where they first heard of a Saviour. From 
Tavoy ; where Ko-thah-byu had been laboring with Mr. 
Boardman and Mr. Mason (now Br. Mason), and where quite 
a large number had been baptized from the Karen villages 
of that region, two of their most intelligent young converts 
were sent to school in Maulmain to learn to read their own 
language ; both could read Burman. One of these has long- 
been a faithful ordained pastor of one of the largest churches 
in the region of Tavoy ; while the other was Sau-Quala, the 
distinguished Karen missionary to Toungoo. Dr. Judson's 
Memoir truly says : — ' The Karens had never before sup- 
posed their language capable of being represented by signs, 
like other languages ; and they felt themselves, from being 
tribes of crushed, down-trodden slaves, suddenly elevated 
into a nation, with every facility for possessing a national 
literature.' " 

Mrs. "Wade proceeds : — " On Mr. Wade's return from the 
United States he was accompanied by the Bev. Messrs. 
Vinton and Howard, missionaries to the Karens. Both 
having studied the Karen language at home, and on the voy- 
age to this country, they were prepared in a good degree to 
commence their labors on their first arrival. The Rev. Mr. 
Howard proceeded almost immediately to Bangoon, where a 
good work among the Karens of that region had been com- 
menced by the Bev. Mr. Bennett, aided by Ko-thah-byu 
(who had now learned to read his own language) and two or 
three preachers from the Karen converts of Maulmain. Mr 



THE KAREN MISSION IN TAVOY. 43 

Boardman had long been resting from his labors, and Mr 
Wade was directed to join Mr. Mason in bis arduous and 
lonely labors in the jungles of the Province of Tavoy, with 
special reference also to a Karen literature. 

" Dr. Judson had continued his labors for the Karens of 
Maulmain, as far as his duties in the Burman department 
would permit : so that one hundred and eleven had been 
baptized, churches had been formed, a good number had 
learned to read their own language, and several of the most 
intelligent and best instructed were already travelling from 
village to village, preaching the ■ Gospel of the Kingdom,' 
or watching over the little flocks in the wilderness." 

From this interesting letter we have a sketch of the first 
introduction to the Karens in the neighborhood of Maulraain, 
and we must now follow the footsteps of Mr. Boardman, and 
consider the commencement of the mission to this people in 
the province of Tavoy. 

The city of Tavoy is one of the strongholds of Buddhism, 
and with its temples and shrines, its glittering pagodas and 
^sacred groves, seems given to idolatry. Very picturesque 
is the scene upon their holy days, when the women gathering 
beneath the shade of the banyans, deck their spreading 
branches with flowers of richest colors, offerings to the un- 
known God ; while, blending with the scene, is heard the 
music of innumerable bells suspended from the fairy spires 
of the pagodas, swelling or falling on the breeze, and echoing 
from hill to hill. How deeply must such scenes have kind- 
led the desire in the missionary's mind to make known to 
them that God whom they ignorantly worshipped ! Tavoy 
at this time was the residence of two hundred priests, and 
had upwards of a thousand pagodas : but Mr. Boardman 
rested upon the promise, and, strong in faith, looked forward 
to that day when even Burman idolaters should turn to the 



4:4: LABORS OF KO-THAII-BTU. 

living God. Ko-thah-eyu, the Karen convert mentioned by 
Mrs. Wade, who had accompanied Mr. Boardman to Tavoy, 
began his earnest labors among his countrymen in Tavoy. 
This remarkable man had been a robber and a murderer, 
and possessed such an ungovernable temper, that even after 
his conversion he had often to spend many hours in prayer 
for strength to overcome it, but he had been " forgiven 
much, and he loved much." One who knew him well wrote : 
" The preaching of Christ crucified was to his mind a work 
of paramount importance to all others. He was not only 
not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, but he gloried in being 
its humble messenger to guilty men. It has been said that 
if ever a man hated idolatry it was Ko-thah-byu. And I 
would add if ever a man loved the gospel, Ko-thah-byu was 
that man. It was his love for the gospel that kindled that 
unconquerable desire to proclaim its precious truths to his 
fellow-men- The word of the Lord was emphatically a fire 
shut up in his bones, so that whenever the inquiry was made, 
' Whom shall I send and who will go for us ?' he was always 
ready to respond, ' Here am I, send me!' " Another wrote : 
" In his beloved work he was unceasingly active, and seemed 
incapable of fatigue. In every other work he was indolent 
and inefficient ; while in preaching Christ crucified, his soul 
would be wrought up with more than mortal energy. He 
was always planning some new excursion, and never was 
so happy as when he found individuals to whom he might 
preach from morning until evening. In seasons of special 
interest, he has not only continued his speech, like Paul, till 
midnight, but, not unfrequently, till break of day." 

As the result of Ko-thah-byu's indefatigable labors, many 
of the Karens from the villages scattered over the mountains 
of Tavoy, flocked in from the distant jungles, with curious 
interest to see the white teacher, and to listen to the wonder- 



WORSHIP OF AN UNKNOWN BOOK. 45 

ful truths he taught, Mr. Boardrnan found that notwith- 
standing their rude exterior, they possessed minds suscep- 
tible of the most lively impressions, and remarkable teach- 
ableness of spirit. As an illustration of their susceptibility 
of impressions, we have an anecdote of a book which Mr. 
Boardrnan found had been left in one of the villages some 
years before by a Mussulman, who told them it was a sacred 
book, and commanded them to worship it. The person who 
had charge of it, though ignorant of its contents, had pre- 
served it with the greatest care ; and wrapped in muslin, 
and enclosed in a basket, the book became the object of 
veneration and worship. The most remarkable fact was, 
that they fully believed in the advent of a teacher, who 
would be able to teach and explain the mysteries of the 
sacred volume. On Mr. Boardman's arrival at the village, 
the chief of the tribe and the keeper of the book, came to 
ascertain his opinion of its character. An interview was 
appointed, when he was to have an opportunity of seeing it 
and judging of its contents ; all seemed anxiously to await 
Mr. Boardman's decision. The day arrived, and with a long- 
train of followers, the chief appeared bringing with him the 
venerated relic. The basket was opened, the muslin unrol- 
led, and taking from its folds an old tattered worn-out vol- 
ume, he reverently presented it to Mr. Boardrnan. 

It proved to be the Book of Common Prayer and the 
Psalms, of an edition printed at Oxford. " It is a good 
book," said Mr. Boardrnan ; " it teaches that there is a God 
in heaven, whom alone we should worship. You have been 
ignorantly worshipping this book : that is not good : I will 
teach you to worship the Grod whom the book reveals." 
Every Karen countenance was alternately lighted up with 
smiles of joy and cast down with inward convictions of hav- 
ing erred in worshipping a book instead of the G-od whom it 



46 PROGRESS OF THE MISSI02T. 

reveals. I took the book of Psalms in Burman, and read 
such passages as seemed appropriate, and having given a 
brief and easy explanation, engaged in prayer. They stayed 
two days and discovered considerable interest in the in 
structions given them. 

The aged sorcerer who had been the keeper of the book 
for twelve years, on hearing Mr. Boardman's decision, per- 
ceived that his office was at an end ; he relinquished the 
fantastical dress he had worn, and the cudgel which for so 
long had been the badge of his spiritual authority, and sub- 
sequently became a humble believer in the Lord Jesus 
Christ. 

When Mr. Boardman was able to visit the Karens in their 
own villages, they received him with joy and respect, -and 
hailed him as one who, they believed, would show to them 
a more excellent way. From this time we find constantly in 
his journals entries like the following. " A good number 
of Karens are now with us, and Ko-thah-byu spends night 
and day in reading and explaining to them the words of 
eternal life. It seems as though the time for favoring this 
people had come/' 

Amongst the Burmans also there seemed to be a deeper 
interest and more earnest inquirers. Mr. Boardman writes : 

" In making a comparison to-day between the present and 
past, I thought it worthy of observation, that although I 
have not half so many visitors at the zayat as formerly, 
those who do come stay longer, listen more attentively, and 
cavil less. Whether this is owing to any change in my 
mode of address, I cannot tell. Formerly it was my custom 
to begin my discourse by telling them of a Supreme Grod 
against whom they had sinned, and that therefore they stood 
in need of a Saviour. But the passage to the dear Saviour 
was so much disputed, that I could seldom introduce Him 



GROWING ILLNESS OF MR. LOARDMAN. 47 

to advantage. I now introduce the Saviour first ; tell of 
His glories, His compassion, His pardoning mercy, His suf- 
ferings and death in our stead, and propose to the people to 
choose whom they will worship, one who can, or one who 
cannot, save them from sin. They do not pretend that 
Gaudama or any other Buddh can save from sin They trust 
entirely to their own good works. In their dreams they are 
floating by the buoyancy of their own meritorious deeds, 
over the ocean of existence to the opposite shore, annihila- 
tion, where existence itself is no more, and where happiness 
and misery cease with the final wreck of their being." 

In the midst of all these labors, the gentle and severer 
discipline of a Father's love visited Boardman and his fam- 
ily. Sickness in themselves, and the removal of their little 
daughter, so tenderly loved as their first-born child, pro- 
duced in them those peaceable fruits of righteousness, which 
sprang up richly to the praise and glory of their God. His 
labors were unwearied and greatly blessed, but already the 
hectic color, the brightening eye, the failing step, spoke of 
disease and death ; yes, and of a glorious immortality. Be- 
sides his eldest child they had also lost an infant of a year 
old. Sorrow had indeed compassed them about, when fresh 
calamities came suddenly and unexpectedly upon them. On 
the night of the 9th August, 1829, they were roused from 
sleep by strange sounds, and rumors at first inexplicable, 
but they soon discovered that the province had risen in re- 
bellion against the Eno-lish Government, and that the Bur- 
mese rebels were flocking into the city. Col. Burney, who 
was Commissioner, was absent at Maulmain. The officer in 
command was dying, they had no English troops, and only 
about a hundred sepoys, so that their position was one of 
extreme danger. The little party of Europeans were, how- 
ever, gathered together, and, after a most gallant stand of 



48 RIOT IN TA.VOY. 

four or five days, were relieved by the arrival of Col. Bur- 
ney in the English steamer. The vessel was immediately 
despatched for reinforcements, and Mrs. Burney and Mrs. 
Boardman and their children, were sent in her. But such 
was the energy shown by Col. Burney and his little band, 
that before the steamer returned with succor, Tavoy was 
again in our possession, and the leader of the revolt paid the 
penalty of his temerity. The mission house had been de- 
stroyed by the rebels, together with all his property, but 
after a hasty and refreshing visit to Maulmain, Mr. Board- 
man returned to renew his labors at Tavoy. The people 
received him gladly, and in his tours into the interior hun- 
dreds heard from him the word of life, and started off to 
communicate the good news to others, often accompanied by 
Ko-thah-byu. 

Mrs. Boardman was indefatigable in the schools which 
she had established at Tavoy, and the influence of her 
Christian character was felt perceptibly in the mission. She 
was indeed one of whom it might be said, " She opened her 
mouth with wisdom, and in her tongue was the law of kind- 
ness :" and to this day there are those who remember with 
thankfulness, the holy counsels, the loving warnings, and the 
fervent prayers, with which she received them into the mis- 
sion circle. At this time her health which was always 
feeble, had given away under repeated shocks, and it was 
thought desirable they should go to Maulmain for a season, 
and supply the vacancy produced by the absence of Mr. and 
Mrs. Wade at Kangoon. In writing to his mother, at this 
period Boardman says, " If you ask whether in these circum- 
stances I regret having come to Burmah, I promptly answer, 
No ; only I regret that I came with no more of the Spirit of 
Christ, and with so much to require the chastising rod of 
divine mercy. To spread the gospel through Burmah is worth 



INQUIRES 8 AND C0NVEET3. 49 

a thousand lives." How glorious is the power of that faith, 
which enables its possessor to contemplate death without a 
fear, and an exchange of worlds with joy ! Again an infant 
son was removed by death, but, as in former cases, they 
yielded him up without a struggle to the divine will. 

In December, 1830, we find them back at Tavoy, and Mrs. 
Boardman then writes : " God is displaying His power and 
grace among the poor Karens in a wonderful manner. Since 
our return from Maulmain we have had several companies 
out to hear the gospel. At one time upwards of forty came, 
and stayed four days ; listening to the doctrines of the cross, 
with an attention and solemnity, that would have done credit 
to a Christian congregation. We have seen all who were bap- 
tized previously to our visit at Maulmain, and so far as we 
can learn they have conducted themselves in a manner wor- 
thy of the followers of Jesus. Perhaps you recollect a chief- 
tain mentioned as an inquirer about two years ago. He 
came at first with the sorcerer who was in possession of the 
deified book, and not long after professed a firm belief in 
the doctrines of the cross, and requested baptism. Having 
given good evidence of his piety, he was baptized. Not 
long after, another respectable man among them named 
Moung Kyah, and his aged father-in law followed his exam- 
ple. Their manner of life since has been such as to remind 
us forcibly of the apostles and primitive Christians. The 
chieftain's name is Moung So. He and Moung Kyah take 
such portions of scriptures as we have been able to give 
them, and go from house to house, from village to village, 
expounding the word, exhorting the people, and uniting 
with their exhortations frequent and fervent prayers ; and 
God has blessed their labors." 

But the time of departure was at hand. In trembling char- 
acters there was entered in Mr. Boardman's journal on Jan. 



50 DEATH OF MR. BOARDMAN. 

1, 1831, " I am travelling with hasty steps to my long 
home. My health, my life, and those of my family and 
friends, I commit to our gracious God for the ensuing year, 
praying that he will dispose of us all, as shall most promote 
His glory and the good of our souls." This was the last record 
made with his own hand. Mr. Mason, who had been desig- 
nated by the Board in America to assist Mr. Boardman in 
his labors at Tavoy, arrived at the end of January, 1831, 
just in time to witness his triumphant death. He had deter- 
mined once more to visit his beloved Karens in their jungle 
homes. The people had finished a zayat at the foot of the 
mountains, and they were to carry him there before he died. 
Mr. Mason accompanied them. They reached the place on 
the third day ; it was upon the banks of a beautiful stream 
at the foot of a mountain range, and in that sweet solitude 
were assembled nearly one hundred Karens, more than half 
of whom were waiting for baptism. No wonder that the spirit 
of the dying missionary was stirred within him, that the 
vain hope was raised in those who loved him, that he might 
yet revive. Even Mrs. Boardman for a moment forgot her 
bitter griefs, in joy over repenting sinners. The failing 
breath soon warned them again that he was sinking, but 
when he was gently urged to return home, he replied, 
" What, if my poor unprofitable life be somewhat shortened 
by staying, ought I, on that account merely, to leave this in- 
teresting field ? Should I not rather stay and assist in gath- 
ering in these dear scattered lambs of the fold ?" Mrs. 
Boardman writes : " The chapel was large, and open on all 
sides except a small place built up for Mr. Mason, and a 
room not above five feet wide, and ten feet long, for the ac- 
commodation of Mr. Boardman and myself, with our little 
boy. The roof was so low that I could not stand upright, 
and it was but poorly enclosed, so that he was exposed to the 



DEATH OF MR. BOARDMAN. 51 

burning rays of the sun by day, and to the cold wind and 
damp fog by night. But his mind was happy, and he would 
often say, ' If I live to see this one ingathering, I may well 
exclaim with happy Simeon, Lord, now lettest thou thy ser- 
vant depart in peace, according to thy word ; for mine eyes 
have seen thy salvation. How many ministers have wished 
they might die in their pulpits ; and would not dying in a 
spot like this be even more blessed than dying in a pulpit 
at home ? I feel it would.' " It was plainly perceptible 
that earthly desires had passed away, and that he was enjoy- 
ing sweet foretastes of that rest into which he was soon to 
enter. On the Wednesday evening about thirty-four persons 
were baptized. Mr. Boardman was carried to the water- 
side, but the joyful sight was almost too much for his ex- 
hausted strength. On being taken back to the chapel, he 
expressed a wish to be present at the evening meal, and, as 
if gathering up his little remaining strength, h.e afterwards 
addressed his disciples who were present, about fifty in num- 
ber, to the following effect : " When I am gone, remember 
what I have taught you, and be careful to persevere unto 
the end, that when you die, we may meet one another in the 
presence of God, never more to part. Listen to the words 
of the new teachers, as you have done to mine. The female 
teacher will be much distressed : strive to lighten her bur- 
dens, and comfort her by your good conduct. Do not neglect 
prayer. The eternal God to whom you pray is unchangeable. 
Earthly teachers sicken and die, but God remains ever the 
same. Love the Lord Jesus Christ with all your hearts, 
and you will be safe forever." 

Early in the morning the little mission-band left for home. 
The sufferings of the journey were increased by a severe 
storm of wind and rain, and they were thankful the next 
morning to leave the comfortless roof of a heathen Tavoyer, 



52 DEATH OF MR. BOARDMAN. 

who had given them shelter for the night ; but on carrying 
the dying saint to the boat, his gentle, spirit fled, and he 
stood before God " accepted in the beloved. " The sorrow- 
ing Karens knelt down in prayer to God — that God of whom 
their departed teacher had taught them, and whose service 
was commended to them with his latest breath. We will 
not attempt to describe the sufferings of the widowed heart : 
God knew it, and it was He who sustained and comforted 
Sarah Boardman. 



ARRIVAL OF MR. AND MRS. MASON". 53 



CHAPTEE III. 

CO-WOKKEES. 

11 O though oft-depressed and lonely, 
All my fears are laid aside, 
If I but remember ouly, 
Such as these have lived and died." 

Longfellow. 

We have been induced to linger over the pages of the 
preceding chapter, from the desire to mark not only the 
origin and commencement of the Karen Mission, but also 
the character of him who first labored amongst this people, 
and who left there " footprints on the sands of time." Well 
might Helen Mason write to her husband from Maulmain. 
" Your introduction to the mission will, I imagine, leave an 
impression upon your mind never to be effaced. Your visit 
to the jungle must have surpassed in interest, any previous 
event in your life. Were you not disposed to cry out as 
you stood by Boardman when dying, ' My Father, My Fa- 
ther ! the chariots of Israel, and the horsemen thereof ?' 
For it seems to me that his dying at mid-day in the field, 
must have been to you more like a translation, than dying." 
Mrs. Mason had been compelled by sickness to remain at 
Maulmain, while her husband proceeded to Tavoy ; but two 
months after Boardman's death, we find them stemming 
the rough and stormy sea, on their way together to Tavoy. 
Landing in the evening, they found their way to Mrs. Board- 



54 

man's frail bamboo dwelling, but the light of home shining 
pleasantly through the lattice-work, fell like sunshine on 
their hearts, and the air of neatness and order which reigned 
within, told of the character of the occupant. A cloud of 
sadness tinged the sweet expressive smile which greeted 
them, and as Sarah Boardman stood with her child beside 
her, it was impossible to forget that she was a widow, and 
he fatherless. Mrs. Mason found in Mrs. Boardman, the 
most perfect congeniality of sentiment and unity of action. 
They had come, not merely as wives, but as missionaries to 
Burmah ; and this seems to have been one of the peculiar char- 
acteristics of the women of the American Missions. They 
have pre-eminently lived, and labored, and died, in seeking 
the salvation of the heathen, and it is impossible to remember 
the names of Judson, Boardman, Mason, Harris, Cummings, 
and Macomber, without emotions of the deepest admiration. 
True it is that the majority of them found early graves, but 
shall others therefore cease to labor ? Shall survivors now 
cease to feel that responsibility for the salvation of the hea- 
then which leads them to warn and entreat, to teach and 
exhort, with many prayers and tears ? " Whenever a long 
unblest life of comparative uselessness is to be preferred to 
a short one filled with ' twice blessed' deeds, they may !" 
Till then, who shall stay their free-will efforts for the salva- 
tion of men ? Shall we not rather pray that America may 
send forth a continued succession of her daughters, to labor 
for the extension of Christ's kingdom, and to emulate those 
who have gone before ? 

After her husband's death, Sarah Boardman came to the 
determination to labor on. She had sat down quietly with 
the cup which her Father had given her to drink, and which 
lie had appointed for her sanctification ; she found there 
was sweetness at the bottom, and she rose up better fitted 



MES. BOAEDMAN's SCHOOLS. 55 

for the work which was before her. The Masons had yet to 
acquire the language, and could do but little in the schools, 
or amongst the female converts. Here then was her special 
sphere of usefulness. From early dawn till late at night, 
she was occupied ; and yet so modest, so unobtrusive were 
her labors, that she passed on, her influence more felt than 
seen. Besides boarding and day-schools in Tavoy, village 
schools were also attempted. She says : " The superintend- 
ence of the food and clothing of both the boarding-schools, 
together with the care of live day-schools, under native 
teachers, devolves wholly on me. My day-schools are grow- 
ing every week more and more interesting. We cannot, it 
is true, expect to see among them such progress, especially 
in Christianity, as our boarders make ; but they are con- 
stantly gaining religious knowledge, and will grow up with 
comparatively correct ideas. They, with their teachers, 
attend worship regularly on the Lord's-day. The day- 
schools are entirely supported at present by the Honorable 
Company's allowance ; and the Civil Commissioner Mr. 
Maingy appears much interested in their success." 

That Mrs. Boardman was conducting Government Schools 
on the plan she mentions, was owing not to her superior tact, 
but to her quiet, unassuming manner ; which creating no 
alarm by ostentatious usefulness, gave her almost unbounded 
power, whenever she chose to exercise it. Although she 
was not aware of the fact, it was at that time far from the 
policy of the Bengal Government to allow the introduction 
of Christianity into their schools. There is a letter address- 
ed to the Commissioner on the subject, a year after our 
present date, which, with his answer, will explain her 
position. 



56 

" Tavoy, August 24*A, 1833. 
" My dear Sir, 

" Mr. Mason has handed me for perusal, the extract from 
your letter to Government, which you kindly sent him. I 
apprehend I have hitherto had wrong impressions in refer- 
ence to the ground on which the Honorable Company pat- 
ronize schools in their territories, and I hope you will allow 
me to say, that it would not accord with my feelings and 
sentiments, to banish religious instruction from the schools 
under my care. I think it desirable for the rising genera- 
tion of this province to become acquainted with useful sci- 
ence ; and the male part of the population with the English 
language. But it is infinitely more important that they 
receive into their hearts our holy religion, which is the 
source of so much happiness in this state, and imparts the 
hope of a glorious immortality in the world to come. Pa- 
rents and guardians must know that there is more or less 
danger of children deserting the faith of their ancestors, if 
placed under the care of a foreign missionary ; and the ex- 
ample of some of the pupils is calculated to increase such 
apprehensions. Mr. Boardman baptized into the Christian 
religion several of his scholars. One of the number is now 
a devoted preacher ; and notwithstanding the decease of 
their beloved and revered teacher, they all, with one unhappy 
exception, remain firm in the Christian faith. 

" The success of the Hindoo College, where religious in* 
struction was interdicted, may perhaps be urged in favor of 
pursuing a similar course in schools here. The overthrow 
of a system so replete with cruel and impure rites as the 
Hindoo, or so degrading as the Mahomedan, might be a 
matter of joy, though no better religion were introduced in 
its stead. But the Burman system of morality is superior 
to that of the nations around them, and to the heathen of 



mrs. boardman's schools. 57 

ancient times, and is surpassed only by the divine precepts 
of our blessed Saviour. Like all other merely human in- 
stitutions, it is destitute of saving power : but its influence 
on the people, so far as it is felt, is salutary, and their moral 
character will, I should think, bear a comparison with that 
of any heathen nation in the world. The person who should 
spend his days in teaching them mere human science would, 
1 imagine, (though he might undermine their false tenets) 
by neglecting to set before them brighter hopes, and purer 
principles, live to very little purpose. For myself, sure I 
am, I should at last suffer the overwhelming conviction of 
having labored in vain. 

" With this view of things, you will not, my dear Sir, be 
surprised at my saying, it is impossible for me to pursue a 
course so utterly repugnant to my feelings and so contrary 
to my judgment, as to banish religious instruction from the 
schools in my charge. It is what, I am confident, you your- 
self would not wish ; but I infer from a remark in your let- 
ter that such are the terms upon which Government afford 
patronage. It would be wrong to deceive the patrons of 
the school ; and if my supposition is correct I can do no 
otherwise than request that the monthly allowance be with- 
drawn. It will assist in establishing schools at Maulmain, 
on a plan more consonant with the wishes of Government 
than mine have been. Meanwhile I trust I shall be able to 
represent the claims of my pupils in such a manner, as to 
obtain support and countenance from those who would wish 
the children to be taught the principles of the Christian 
faith. 

" Allow me, my dear Sir, to subscribe myself, 
" Yours, most respectfully, 

" Sarah H. Boardman." 
3* 



58 mrs. boardman's schools. 

" My dear Madam, 

" I cannot do otherwise than honor and respect the 
sentiments conveyed in your letter. You will, I hope, give 
me credit for sincerity, when I assure you, that in alluding 
to the system of instruction pursued by you, it has ever been 
a source of pride to me to point out the quiet way in which 
your scholars have been made acquainted with the Christian 
religion. My own Government in no way proscribes the 
teaching of Christianity. The observations in my official 
letter are intended to support what I have before brought 
to the notice of Government, that all are received who pre- 
sent themselves for instruction at your schools without any 
stipulation as to their becoming members of the Christian 
faith. 

" I cannot express to you how your letter has distressed 
me. It has been a subject of consideration with me for 
some months past, how I could best succeed in establishing 
a College here, the scholars of which were to have been in- 
structed on the same system which you have so successfully 
pursued. 

" Believe me, 

" Yours very faithfully, 

" A. D. Maingy." 

Mrs. Boardman's Christian fidelity and firmness were 
productive of great good : an appropriation being obtained 
from Government for schools throughout the provinces " to 
be conducted on the plan of Mrs. Boardman's schools at 
Tavoy." The plan was not fully carried out, for the teach- 
ing of Christianity was soon prohibited, though she was nev- 
er interfered with, but was allowed to follow the dictates of 
her own conscience. 

In addition to her other work, Mrs. Boardman commenced 



MRS. HELEN MASON. 59 

the study of the Karen. In Burmese she was already well 
read. The glimpses of some of her jungle tours are very 
interesting, though they scarcely reach us from her own pen. 
At the end of three years of such labor Mrs. Boardman 
married Dr. Judson ; one whom she emphatically describes 
to be " a complete assemblage of all that a woman's heart 
could wish to love and honor." This union was greatly 
blessed to their mutual help and comfort, and in leaving 
Tavoy Mrs. Judson entered upon a field of perhaps still 
higher and more enlarged usefulness ; while in Mrs. Mason 
she left behind her a fellow-worker every way fitted to fol- 
low in her steps. 

Helen Mason's motto was to " love and be silent ;" but 
like the violet betrayed by its own fragrance, so her works 
follow her. The service which she had early chosen, was 
stedfastly pursued to the close of her life. Simple in her 
tastes and habits, she wished to live, so that the humblest 
contributors to 3Iissions, could enter her house without feel- 
ing offended at anything that they might see. " We are," 
she would say, " the representatives to the heathen of a 
Saviour, .who chose to be poor." 

The most exquisite neatness pervaded her home, and reg- 
ulated her dress, but the vase of flowers, and the few choice 
shells, gathered from the sea-shore, proved that she had a 
taste for the beautiful in nature and in art. " Let us give 
ourselves unreservedly to this glorious work," the work of 
winning souls to Christ : this was the constant utterance of 
her heart, as it was the absorbing aim of her life. 

In the jungle tours with Mr. Mason, she had the happy 
art of gathering the women around her, and interesting them 
in the story of the Saviour's love. In town also she had a 
school of Karen girls, in whom she felt peculiar interest. 
Knowing that their good conduct, on their return to their 



60 mks. mason's schools. 

mountain homes, might produce a favorable impression on 
the minds of the Karens who came to the school in future 
years, she would follow them to the hamlets, and many a 
happy meeting took place between the teacher and the 
pupils, who were all eager to do something for herself, or 
her babe. The married women too benefited by her pre- 
cepts and example. In one of the sequestered glens was a 
woman of the name of Naughapo, signifying " Daughter of 
Goodness," who was a great favorite of Mrs. Mason, and 
shared largely in her instructions. She was the Dorcas of 
the glen, clothing the naked, feeding the hungry, soothing 
the afflicted, and often making her little dwelling the home 
of the poor, that they might enjoy the privilege of a neigh- 
boring school. Mrs. Mason was struck with the beauty of < 
her peaceful home, evidently a spot which the Lord had bless- 
ed. It was on the declivity of a hill, overlooking a well 
stocked garden, and a mountain stream flowed murmuring 
past, pouring forth its eternal harmony. On asking Naug- 
hapo and her husband if God should call them from their 
garden to their grave, would they feel alarmed ? they an- 
swered, " No, ive do not consider that anything ive have is 
our own. All, all is God's." The day before Mrs. Mason 
left, a box-wallah* had called, with his tempting fabrics for 
sale ; but though this good woman was in poor garments, she 
had but one rupee for purchasers, while on the following 
morning, she and her family put thirteen rupees into Mrs. 
Mason's hands, to be deposited in the mission treasury. She 
had not only learned that " godliness is profitable unto all 
things ; having promise of the life that now is, and of that 
which is to come," but that " it is more blessed to give than 
to receive." Such was some of the fruit of Mrs. Mason's 
example and instruction. For the twelve pupils of her first 
* Pedlar. 



HER VISIT TO AMERICA. 61 

Karen school, she ever felt a tender interest. She had 
asked God for all of them, and while thankful for the con- 
version of one, she could not rest without that of the whole. 
And what she asked she obtained ; though the last of the 
number was not baptized until about ten years after the 
school was closed. 

For many years Mrs. Mason also labored for the Bur man 
children, and had six day-schools in Tavoy, containing about 
one hundred and forty children. She at first found it very 
difficult to meet a woman who could read, and still more so 
one who would be willing to read "Jesus Christ's books." 
At last one was found, and then another, and another, to 
assist in this work of love. 

In the midst of all her earnest labors, she had to retrace 
her steps to America, and there to leave her beloved child- 
ren to be trained by others. It was some years after this 
that in writing to a friend she said : " We have heard of the 
tortures of the Inquisition, but I do not know that any could 
exceed this self-sacrifice. When I was leaving my children, 
Lucy, who was old enough to understand something of her 
loss, clung around me, saying, ' Other little girls have their 
mothers : I want mine.' " 

The following lines were wrung from that full heart dur- 
ing her return voyage in 1838. 

" Sleep, lov'd one, sleep ! thy gentle rest, 
Oh ! how unlike to mine ! 
What would I give, could once my breast 
But beat as light as thine. 

" Sweet flowret ! might the storms of life 
But spend their wrath on me ; 
Glad would I bear their wildest strife, 
And smile to think of thee. 



62 VISIT TO THE SGATJ KATiENS. 

" Heaven shield thee, tender little rose, 
As thy soft beauties spread ; 
And temper every wind that blows 
To thy defenceless head." 

One sunny evening, on Mr. Mason's return from a preach- 
ing excursion among the Burmans, the first object which 
arrested his attention upon entering his home was the fine 
form of a Sgau Chief, who seated like a child at Mrs. Mason's 
feet was earnestly imploring her to yisit the Karens in his 
village and neighborhood. " We have heard of Christianity, 
and it seems to us something wonderful. We do not under- 
stand it : and yet it seems the thing we want. Come to 
our jungle homes, and preach to us on our native streams. 
Many will believe. I have a Burman wife, and I have 
daughters, and sons-in-law, and brothers, and nephews, all of 
whom will become Christians, as well as myself, as soon as 
we really understand." Many months passed away before 
they reached the Chiefs dwelling, but he had obtained light 
and strength slowly, and was not one to turn back. It was 
five long years before he was clear entirely of the trammels 
of heathenism, and stood forth Christ's freed-man. For five 
years the missionary travelled through the region where he 
dwelt, but not a single soul was baptized : but from the 
time the Chieftain was made willing to give up all for Christ, 
he became one of the most efficient laborers in Mergui and 
Tavoy. Mainly through his efforts, all his own family, as 
well as all under his influence were made to feel the power 
of Christianity, and many were baptized. The last mention 
of the old man was, on his return from a visit to his brother. 
His tall form doubled like a leaf, was on the back of his 
grandson. His brother's dwelling was a long day's journey 
distant ; and most of it had been performed in this manner. 
The lad was a fine intelligent Christian, and it would be dif- 



THE SGAU CHIEF. 63 

ficult to know which most to admire, the willingness of the 
young man to perform such a fatiguing service, to carry the 
gospel to his uncle, or the zeal of the old Chief, who seemed 
to forget his aching bones, in the delight he felt at having 
once more exhorted his brother, and seen in him some evi- 
dences of divine grace. " I can't die," he said to Mr. Mason, 
while a gleam of youthful fire glowed through his feeble 
frame, — " I can't die, till I see my brother converted.'''' 

Helen Mason was eminently a working Christian, and she 
continued so till the close of life. Sometimes she would 
half playfully remark, " I shall vanish away from you before 
long," and no doubt the gradual weakening of her strength 
was gently warning her that rest was at hand. There was 
no disease, it was simply exhaustion. 

" I thought it likely I should wear out in this way,*' she 
said, " and therefore had clothes made for you and the child- 
ren, that you might be well provided for, but prepared none 
for myself." 

The most remarkable feature during her illness, was the 
calm and unruffled peace that constantly pervaded her mind. 
In dictating a letter to her aunt, she said, " From the com- 
mencement of my illness to the present time, my peace has 
been like a river ; and the words of my Saviour have been 
verified to me, ' Peace I leave with you : my peace I give 
unto you 1' At eighteen my spirits would have been more 
buoyant. Then I should have felt like mounting on the 
chariots of Aminadab ; now 

1 This heavenly calm within the breast, 
Is the dear pledge of glorious rest.' " 

She was never seen to weep but once during her whole 
sickness, and that was when her infant child was brought to 
her for the last time. Bursting into tears, she said, " Poor 



64 mes. mason's death. 

babe, you will never know a mother's love !" On one oc- 
casion, in speaking of the trials of their missionary life, she 
said : " Missionary work is hard work, and none ought ever 
to engage in it, that are not called to it. No, certainly, none 
ought ever to come, unless specially called." 

On awaking one morning, she remarked : " Hitherto I 
have felt passive, but I awoke this morning with strong de- 
sires to depart. Do not call me back. It is much easier 
dying, than coming back to life again." 

When her aching frame was turned in bed, she would of- 
ten say, " Oh ! that I had the wings of a dove ; for then I 
would flee away and be at rest." Conversing during one of 
her last days, on the great work to be done for the heathen, 
she said, " Tell the native Christians, that I loved them to 
the end, and that had it been the will of God, I would have 
willingly stopped, and taught them longer. Tell them to 
strive to get to heaven ; that the kingdom of heaven suffereth 
violence, and the violent take it by force !" "Tell them," 
she continued, stretching out her withered arm with an en- 
ergy, such as she manifested on no other occasion, and in 
tones so loud and sonorous, that all were startled, " tell 
them to lay hold on eternal life." " Thus," says Mr. Mason, 
" she reached the goal of her mission path, and left us, like 
the disciples on Mount Olivet, looking up stedfastly towards 
heaven." 

Let us pause for a moment to think of the character which 
has just passed under review. Helen Mason was not an or- 
dinary Christian, and perhaps in the consideration of her 
life we may gain some lessons which may be useful to our- 
selves, for " none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth 
to himself." 

She was remarkable for great meekness and gentleness 
of spirit, which in the sight of God is of great price. Her 



mrs. mason's character. 65 

husband never once in the whole course of their married 
life, saw her manifest any indication of anger, she was ever 

"Sweet in temper, face, and word, 
To please an ever-present Lord." 

She was remarkable also for strong affections. We see this 
iu the anguish she endured when called to separate from 
her children. The " fearful chasm " then made was filled 
by God Himself. " Previous to the decision in my mind to 
become a foreign missionary," she wrote, " I heard Dr. 
Griffin preach on the church being guilty of ' keeping back 
part of the price,' and often during my lonely voyage back 
did I inquire, ' Have I kept back anything ?' If my heart 
clung to anything, it was to my children ; yet I willingly 
gave them back to God, though the act lacerated my heart 
to the core." 

She was one who sought to " icalk ivitli God." This was 
the habit of her mind. In writing to her husband she says, 
" Pray much and often for me, that I may be able to ' abide 
in Christ,' to ' live in the Spirit,' and c walk in the Spirit.' 

' As pants the hart for cooling streams, 
When heated with the chase, 
So longs my soul, God, for Thee, 
And thy refreshing grace.' 

" I daily and hourly wish you the best blessings, and 
pray that you may have much communion with God. It was 
in the wilderness that Moses saw the burning bush ; on Pis- 
gah that he saw the promised land ; and from mount Nebo 
that he went up to take possession of the heavenly Canaan. 
In each of these places we may suppose he had very inti- 
mate communion with God." 

Into this spirit of communion, she herself drank deeply : 
she was eminently a woman of prayer. Here was her 



DO THE PKAYER-HOUSE. 

strength. Her husband writes, " Often, often, times with- 
out number, have I awoke in the silent watches of the night, 
and found that she had stolen from my side, and was holding 
earnest communion with God. Her silver whispers, her 
bosom swelling with suppressed ' groanings that could not 
be uttered,' would awe into stillness, lest a motion should 
indicate that her hallowed converse with the Holy One was 
observed. She struggled with the Angel of the Covenant 
and prevailed, and He blessed her." 

In the little missionary cemetery near their house, Board- 
man had erected a small bamboo oratory, fitted with a chair, 
a table, and a Bible, to which he had retired " and had pray- 
ed into existence the Karen Mission." Here too Sarah 
Boardman had followed his example : and to this favorite re- 
treat the steps of Helen Mason often resorted. There she 
" spent days in fasting and prayer ; communing with God, 
and feeding on Angel's food." There too she was " laid to 
rest like a weary babe upon its mother's bosom." It was 
meet that where she had so often agonized in prayer, she 
should be composed to her quiet sleep, and that her grave 
should be, where she had so often gone up to commune with 
God. Shall we say that this is an example beyond our imi- 
tation ? Far be it from us to say so, for the grace of Christ 
is all-sufficient. Helen Mason had no great gifts or talents 
peculiar to herself, but she had a heart which was consecra- 
ted to the love and service of God, that service which is per- 
fect freedom. " Go ye and do likewise." 



KO-THAH-A. 67 



CHAPTER IV 



.REGIONS BEYOND. 



" He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubt- 
less come again rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him/' — Psalm 
cxxvi. 6. 

It was in the year 1830, that Ko-Thah-a, a Burman con- 
vert of Rangoon, appeared before Dr. Judson, and Mr. Wade 
at Maulmain. During the long dark period which had inter- 
vened since the war, and the expulsion of the missionaries 
from Burmah proper, Ko-Thah-a, in the midst of much peril 
and persecution, had endeavored to keep together the little 
church at Rangoon. He had now travelled to Maulmain to 
represent its suffering condition, to seek for advice and en- 
couragement, and to receive from Judson and from Wade 
those wise and holy counsels, which he knew would be so 
freely given. Ko-Thah-a is first introduced to us by Dr. 
Judson as being a frequent visitor at the Rangoon mission 
house, and shortly afterwards as " giving good evidence of 
being a true disciple." He is described at the time as a 
respectable householder, rather above the middling class, 
about fifty years of age, unmarried, and living with his aged 
mother, who was dependent on him n in a small village 
called Nau-dau-gong, about half a mile from the mission. 
He had formerly been an officer under government, and had 
amassed considerable property, which he mostly spent in 
building pagodas, and making offerings. u But he obtained 



68 KO-THAH-A BAPTIZED. 

no satisfaction, found no resting place for his soul, until lie 
became acquainted with the religion of Jesus. He now," 
wrote Dr. Judson, " rests in this religion, with conscious 
security ; believes and loves all that he hears of it, and 
prays that he may become fully a true disciple of the 
Saviour." He was baptized in 1822, just before Dr. Jud 
son's departure for Ava. His manner of application evinc- 
ed his earnestness. " Early in the morning Moung Thah-a 
came in, and taking Dr. Judson aside, knelt down, raised his 
folded hands in the attitude of reverence, and made a very 
pathetic and urgent application for immediate baptism. He 
stated that he had considered the Christian religion for 
above two years ; that his mind was completely settled on 
every part ; and that though he had been harassed with 
many fears, he was now resolved to enter the service of 
Jesus Christ, and remain faithful unto death, whatever the 
consequences in this world might be." The rite was admin- 
istered the following day, August 20th, the new convert 
making the seventeenth Burman, who up to that time had 
publicly professed his faith in Christ in baptism. 

He had spent a few months, at the end of the war, in 
1826, at a large village in the neighborhood of Shwaydoung ; 
and there devoting himself to the preaching of the word, had 
produced a very considerable excitement. Several professed 
to believe in the Christian religion ; and three of the most 
promising received baptism at his hands. Others requested 
the same favor, but he became alarmed at his own temerity, 
and declined their repeated applications. On his return to 
Rangoon, he continued to disseminate the truth, but in a 
more cautious and covert manner. He had now come to 
Maulmain to inquire what he should do with those who 
wished to be baptized, and to get some instructions concern- 
ing his own duty. 



KOTHAH-A OEDAINED. 69 

Of his qualifications for the ministerial office, Dr. Judson 
wrote : — " He has been so evidently called of God to the 
ministry, that we have not felt at liberty to hesitate or de- 
liberate about the matter. But, if it had been left to us to 
select one of all the converts to be the first Christian pastor 
among his countrymen, Ko-Thah-a is the man we should 
have chosen. His age, (fifty-seven,) his steadiness and weight 
of character, his attainments in Burman literature, which 
though not perhaps necessary, seem desirable in one who is 
taking up arms against the religion of his country, and his 
humble devotedness to the sacred work, all conspire to make 
us acquiesce with readiness and gratitude in the divine ap- 
pointment." Succeeding years have shown that the " divine 
appointment" was not misapprehended. 

Moung Ing, who was soon afterwards ordained, was asso- 
ciated with Ko-thah-a in the Rangoon pastorate. Their 
united labors were greatly blessed, and many who had been 
scattered during the raging of the war and the persecution 
which followed, returned to the flock, so that by the end of 
the year twenty were added to the church. 

Early in 1830, Mr. and Mrs. Wade removed to Rangoon, 
where for several months they continued strengthening and 
confirming the disciples. They were followed by Dr. Jud- 
son, who had never ceased to feel an interest in the scene of 
his earliest labors. It was with some apprehension and fear, 
that they attempted again to establish the mission in this 
stronghold of idolatry, but the Governor was friendly, and 
although the subordinate officers kept up a continual sur- 
veillance, it did not deter the people from coming in large 
numbers for copies of the scriptures and tracts. The Bur- 
man troops who. came in for enrolment or inspection, mer- 
chants, who travelled from different parts of the empire for 
the purposes of traffic, all had the opportunity of hearing of 



70 RANGOON MISSION RE-ESTABLISHED. 

the true God ; and though watched, and warned, multitudes 
visited the mission house saying, " We have heard the fame 
of this religion, and are come to get books." Thus was the 
word of life conveyed to many a far-off region. And in that 
great day when the Lord shall make up His jewels, perhaps 
it may be found that many hidden ones dwelt in those 
mountains, who, unknown to man, were well known to that 
Saviour God, who had sent His word and Spirit to enlighten 
them, and to guide their feet into the way of peace. 

In the beginning of the summer of 1830 Dr. Judson de- 
termined to make a tour up the Irrawaddy, for the purpose 
of visiting the towns, and villages on its banks. Taking 
with him Moung Ing, and some other native Christians, he 
embarked upon those bright waters, upon which he had so 
often sailed, in safety and in peril, in joy and grief. Wher- 
ever he landed he commanded attention, and the people 
flocked around with eagerness to listen. In this way he 
pushed up to Prome, a large city midway between Rangoon 
and Ava. Here he remained for a time the guest of the only 
European inhabitant, but at last received permission to oc- 
cupy an old zayat, standing near a pagoda ; and those who 
visited the idol temple listened to the earnest teachings of 
the Christian missionary. Here he spoke of Christ to the 
votaries of Gaudama, but when a spirit of inquiry was roused, 
and crowds flocked to hear or to cavil, and the hopes of the 
missionary were raised, they suddenly ceased to come, and 
it was not until after his return to Rangoon, that Dr. Judson 
discovered that the Emperor annoyed at his having ventured 
so far into the interior had given orders for his return. The 
intelligence that such an order had been given, was sufficient 
to account for the absence of the inquirers. 

On Dr. Judson's return to Rangoon he resolved to give 
himself with more earnestness than ever to the completion 



BTJBMAN TRANSLATION OF THE BIELE. 71 

of that great work, the translation into Bur man of the entire 
Scriptures. The early morning hour, the lonely lamp burn- 
ing still at midnight, testified to his unwearied diligence. 
Denying himself the cheering influence of Christian con- 
verse, he confined himself almost entirely to his solitary task. 
His praise was not of man but of God. It was not, however, 
till the 31st of January, 1834, that these noble labors were 
brought to their completion. They had been prosecuted 
through the changes of a most eventful life, often under the 
pressure of sickness and of sorrow. How full of affecting 
interest and sublimity is the scene presented to the mind by 
the simple touching postscript to his letter home, dated 
January 31st, 1834. " Thanks be to God, I can now say I 
have attained. I have knelt down before Him, with the last 
leaf in my hand, and, imploring His forgiveness for all the 
sins which have polluted my labors in this department and 
His aid in future efforts to remove the errors and imperfec- 
tions which necessarily cleave to the work, I have com- 
mended it to His mercy and grace, I have dedicated it to 
His glory. May He make His own inspired word, now com- 
plete in the Burman tongue, the grand instrument of filling 
all Burmah with songs of praise to our great God and Sav- 
iour Jesus Christ. Amen." 

In the beginning of the year 1831, the great Buddhist 
Festival was celebrated with unusual pomp in the magnifi- 
cent Shway Dagong Pagoda at Bangoon, and from the count- 
less multitudes who were gathered from the most distant parts 
of the empire, Dr. Judson had an excellent opportunity of 
judging how far an interest had been awakened by the labors 
of past years, and by the circulation of books and tracts, 
through the land. From every province of the interior, from 
the frontiers of Cathay, and even from the borders of China 
and Siam, numbers visited Dr. Judson, saying, " We hear 



72 ME. WADE AT MERGUI. 

that there is an eternal hell,— we are afraid of it. Do give 
us a writing that will tell us how to escape it." Others, per- 
haps from the very opposite quarter of the empire, would 
say, " Sir, we have seen a writing that tells us of an eternal 
God : are you the man that gives away such writings ? If 
so give us one, for we want to know the truth." Others, 
living nearer at hand, had heard of the name of Jesus, and 
asked, " Are you Jesus Christ's man ? Give us a writing 
that tells about Jesus Christ." The numbers who came in 
this way, to inquire after the truth, were estimated by Dr. 
Judson at not less than six thousand, to each of whom was 
given some book, or tract, or portion of Scripture, which 
might reveal to them the way of life. 

In the summer of 1831, it was found necessary for Mr. 
and Mrs. Wade, who were again at Maulmain, to try a change 
of climate. The health of the former had long been failing. 
Dr. Judson had therefore to return to Maulmain to take 
charge of the mission during their absence. His heart was 
cheered with the progress that had been made, and by the 
accession to the missionary band of Mr. Kincaid, who, with 
Mr. and Mrs. Bennett, had recently arrived there. The mis- 
sionaries had extended their labors far into the surrounding 
jungles, and a most interesting settlement had been formed 
for the Karen Christians, called Wadesville, in commemora- 
tion of the devoted missionary who first preached the gospel 
there. 

Mr. Wade's health was so far improved by the voyage to 
sea, that he returned for a season to Mergui, a city on the 
Tenasserim coast, about a hundred and fifty miles south of 
Tavoy. Accompanied by Mrs. Wade he visited the Karen 
villages of Mergui with the gospel, and a more interesting 
reception than was given them, it would be difficult to find 
on record. They were met by an intelligent chief, now a 



LABORS OF MR. KINCAID. 73 

pillar in the church, and were led into the village on their 
arrival, by several young women, whom he had invited 
amongst others for the purpose of singing a hymn, of which 
the first verse in the chorus was — 

" The Lord his messengers doth send, 
And he himself will quickly come ; 
The priests of Buddh, whose reign is short, 
Must leave the place to make the room." 

After a residence of six months they were sent to Ran- 
goon, leaving Ko Ing pastor of the church at Mergui, but 
the following year Mr. Wade's health was so completely ex-- 
hausted, that they were compelled to seek its restoration in 
their native land. 

We shall now endeavor to trace out some of the early 
labors of that intrepid missionary, Mr. Kincaid. We find 
him in the early part of 1832 at Rangoon, and at its close 
surrounded by inquirers from all parts of the country. Some 
confessed their belief in the Great Grod, others that they 
had long studied the books, and had been thinking of Chris- 
tianity. " It is wonderful," they would exclaim ; " a great 
light that is visiting the world." In the beginning of 1833, 
three Burmans were baptized, and others desired baptism ; 
many more were known to be secret believers, but from fear 
of persecution were kept back. Some of those who frequent- 
ed the zayat had often said to Mr. Kincaid, " Why do you 
not go to Ava and to all the great cities of the Empire ? 
Many have heard of the new religion and the books, and wish 
to understand them." The reiterated inquiry, produced the 
desire to unfurl the standard of the cross in that city in which 
it had once been trampled under foot ; and having, after 
some difficulty, obtained a pass, Mr. Kincaid started for 
Ava, accompanied by his wife and her sister, on the 6th 
April, 1833. Three native assistants followed them, with 

4 



74 MR. KINC AID'S JOURNEY TO AVA. 

large supplies of tracts and portions of the Scriptures. The 
passage up the river was not without its dangers, but every- 
where they found a spirit of inquiry amongst the people, and 
traces of the influence which had been exerted by native 
Christians and Christian books. 

Arrived at Ava, they were met at once with difficulties. 
The Government, on the most trifling pretences, refused 
them a shelter ; but, on the British Resident representing 
that Mrs. Kincaid and her sister were British subjects, they 
were immediately provided with a house in the city. 
" Here," writes Mr. Kincaid, " the very thing that ought to 
rejoice my heart often troubles me ; it is the numbers that 
are flocking to the verandah to read and hear the word of 
God. If I would I could not resist the tide that is setting 
in. Our verandah is pretty well filled during the day, and 
sometimes forty or fifty come in at a time." He was treat- 
ed with great courtesy by the officers of the Government, 
and invited to visit the Prince Mekhara, who was a man of 
some education, and could speak English. The King also 
expressed some curiosity about the art of printing , one of the 
printers with a press was sent to Ava, and much interest 
was excited by the books printed in the Burman tongue. 
Two persons also were baptized. One was a priest of con- 
siderable learning, who had long been a most popular ex- 
pounder of Buddhism in the city. 
. The exhibition of excitement and curiosity regarding the 
truths of Christianity which marked this period, was very 
remarkable. "It seemed like the waking up of the popular 
mind to the light of Christian truth; the commencement of a 
mighty and speedy revolution in the religion of the country." 
It could scarcely be expected that the great enemy would 
allow such a state of things to continue, without some effort 
to maintain his hold over the minds of men. In 1835, a 



PERSECUTION. 75 

violent persecution broke out in Rangoon. The first victim 
was Ko Sanlone, a man of deep piety, great intelligence, and 
bold and active zeal in the service of Christ. He was one 
who had accompanied Mr. Kincaid to Ava, and since his re» 
turn to Rangoon had been amongst the few who had dared 
openly to distribute books, and to lift up a voice for God and 
His cause, beneath the frowning despotism of a Burman 
Court. He was at last seized, thrown into prison, beaten, 
loaded vrith chains, and compelled to cruel labor. His faith 
never wavered under the storm of persecution, but only 
shone forth the more brightly through the dark cloud. 
Whether before the tribunal of Burman magistrates, or un- 
der the lashes of the persecutors, or in the loathsome 
dungeon, he bore all with the meek and holy fortitude of the 
Christian martyr. Though repeatedly threatened with death, 
unless he would abjure the faith and worship Gaudama, he 
trusted unwaveringly in God, and exhibited a noble pattern 
of the Christian character. After a time he was released 
from prison, but his entire property was confiscated, and he 
was forbidden on pain of death to resume his labors in the 
mission. But he had fought a good fight, he had finished 
his course, he had kept the faith, and now the angel call had 
come ; he was to hear those gracious words : " Come* thou 
blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you 
before the foundation of the world." He died deeply mourn- 
ed by the missionaries with whom he had labored. 

The persecutions were not confined to Rangoon. The 
Karens who were scattered up and down a little stream 
known by the name of " The Karen Brook," in the district 
of Maubee, were subjected to fines and heavy taxations, 
while they refused to worship the Nats, or to acknowledge 
Gaudama. These converts were the fruit of the unwearied 
labors of Ko-thah-bvu. It was in the spring of 1833, that 



76 REMARKABLE PROGRESS AT MAUBEE. 

this excellent- native preacher went up to Rangoon with Mr. 
and Mrs. Bennett ; and such was the blessing resting upon his 
work in the Karen villages, that in writing to Mr. Judson at 
the close of the rains, Mr. Bennett says, " We are in dis- 
tress, and send to you for relief. For the last several days, 
our house and Ko-thah-byu's have been thronged ; men, 
women, and children, all anxiously inquiring about the reli- 
gion of Jesus. They are all anxious for schools, and offer 
to build zayats for preaching, if any one will come and teach 
them. There are many who already keep the Lord's day, 
read our tracts, and endeavor to instruct one another as best 
they can. They daily read the tracts, and all get together 
in their families, and sing and pray to the God who rules in 
heaven. They declare they have left off drinking spirits, 
and as far as they understand, endeavor to practise accord- 
ing to the requirements of Scripture. "What shalf we do ? 
Ko-thah-byu is only one among a thousand. He cannot 
preach the gospel, and teach these people to ' read in their 
own tongue' the precious truths of God's word, at the same 
time. We want one man to go to Bassein, another to go up 
to Prome and along the river, another to Maubee and its 
vicinity, towards old Pegu, all these to preach the gospel ; 
and we certainly need as many more school-masters. Can 
you send us any assistance ? If so, do ; for Christ and his 
cause require it. There surely is the sound of rain, I would 
say ' of much rain.' Oh ! could we go amongst these people 
as freely and easily as in the provinces, I have no doubt 
hundreds would be added to the Lord. I think the Karens 
here superior to those in the provinces, so far as I have seen ; 
and could they be collected together, and civilized, and 
Christianized, they would be a lovely nation. When will 
this happy time arrive ? Hasten it, Lord, in thine own time, 
for Jesus' sake." 



BAPTISMS AT MAUBEE. 77 

It was in this interesting and hopeful field that trial now- 
abounded, and some of the oppressed Christians had to fly s 
to escape the tyranny of their Burnian persecutors. But 
they bore with them the faith they had embraced, and preach- 
ed the Gospel in all the regions into which they fled. Ko- 
thah-byu was soon found with a portion of his scattered flock, 
telling the story of the cross and teaching the precepts of 
Christ, in districts hitherto unvisited. 

At Rangoon all labor was for a time suspended ; but when 
Mr. and Mrs. Vinton went up at the end of 1836, and, with 
Mr. Abbott and Mr. Howard, made a tour up the Irrawaddy 
and into the district of Maubee, they met large numbers, 
who, notwithstanding the severity of the trials to which they 
had been subjected, had embraced Christianity, and had 
been long waiting for baptism. In the course of that jour- 
ney alone one hundred and seventy-three were baptized 
nearly all of whom had received the truth from the preach- 
ing of Ko-thah-byu. 

Mr. Kincaid, who was at this time at Ava, had among the 
small congregation of believers under his care, a young Bur- 
man of rank, whose sister was maid of honor to the Queen. 
Hearing that her brother had renounced idolatry, she used 
every effort to persuade him to return to the faith of his 
fathers ; but finding all her attempts were fruitless as long as 
he remained under Christian influence, she obtained for him 
through the Queen an appointment under Government in the 
province of Bassein. It was with deep sorrow that he left 
his home and Christian brethren, for a province five hundred 
miles distant, where he could have little hope of finding any 
who, like himself, knew and loved the God of Israel. He 
was scarcely, however, installed as Governor of the Karens 
in Bassein, when the Burmese officials brought before him 
some men from the jungles, whom they charged with wor- 



78 ENLAEGEMENT OF THE MISSION. 

shipping a strange God. " What God ?" was his first ques- 
tion. " They call him the eternal God !" was the reply, and 
great was their astonishment when the new Governor instead 
of ordering them away to punishment, commanded that they 
should he set free, and the Karen Christians returned to 
their homes unmolested, and in peace. When the rumor 
spread abroad that the new Governor not only tolerated the 
religion of Jesus, but kept His day and observed His laws, 
there could no longer be any doubt that he was a Christian. 
Persecutions on account of religion were at an end ; during 
the two years of his mild rule at Bassein, the word of God 
spread and prevailed, and at the end of that time, two 
thousand persons were reported by the native preachers as 
converted souls. 

tSo diversified and wide spread were the labors of the mis- 
sionaries at this period, that it is impossible, in a work of 
this kind, to give more than a passing glance at all. Dr. 
Judson was pursuing his labors at Maulmain ; and the Wades, 
who had returned from America, were now stationed at 
Tavoy, and together with the Masons carrying on their inde- 
fatigable work of teaching, preaching, and translations. Mrs. 
Judson at this period gave great attention to the Peguans, a 
race who are entirely distinct from the Burmans in every- 
thing but their religion. They were numerous in the neigh- 
borhood of Maulmain, and as they mingled with the congre- 
gations of Burmans or Karens, had often awakened an 
interest in the hearts of the missionaries. Nothing however 
had been especially attempted for them, until Mrs. Judson, 
with her accustomed energy and zeal devoted herself to 
acquiring their language and translated into it several tracts, 
a compilation of her own of the Life of Christ, and a con- 
siderable portion of the New Testament. On the arrival of 
Mr. Haswell in 1836, who had been appointed to take charge 



ME. KING AID AT AVA. 79 

of the Malaing mission, she surrendered to him her labor 
and the fruits it was already promising, and returned to the 
appropriate duties of her station, having performed a task 
of great difficulty and importance, which no other member 
of the mission was then able to accomplish. 

In the commencement of 1837, we find that Mr. Kincaid 
had been strengthened at Ava by the arrival of Mr. and Mrs. 
Simons, and Mr. and Mrs. Webb. Certainly no place in the 
empire offered greater facilities for the prosecution of their 
great work than the capital itself. As the centre of authority, 
and the residence of the Emperor, it was resorted to from 
every quarter of the realm by persons of influence, as well 
as by the princes and their retainers, and the merchants and 
traders who brought their produce from every corner of the 
land. 

Mr. Kincaid had become acquainted with several who had 
travelled to Ava in the train of some Shan princes. These 
people occupy the provinces on the northern frontier of 
Burmah. Having carefully inquired from them the position 
of their country, he conceived the idea that it would be 
possible by this route to gain access to China, and by this 
means not only to convey the gospel to the Shans, but to 
that great nation also. For the purpose of ascertaining how 
far his views were correct, and to become acquainted with 
the people of the northern provinces, he determined with 
the approval of his brethren to visit the frontier of Assam. 
On the 27th January, 1837, accompanied by four native 
Christians, he embarked on the Irrawaddy in a boat de- 
spatched on the public service by Col. Burney, who was 
then the English Besident at Ava. 

After a twenty-two days' passage, through a country of 
great natural beauty, they reached the city of Mogaung. 
distant three hundred and fifty miles from the capital. Here 



80 

beneath the shadow of the Himalaya mountains, rising as the 
natural barrier between the countries, lay the vast wilderness 
which separates Burmah from Hindustan. During his stay 
in the city he made several excursions into the valley, but 
from the difficulty of obtaining either men or provisions to 
enable him to pursue his journey further, he was compelled 
very reluctantly to return to Ava. The country was now in 
a state of civil war, and overrun with hordes of banditti 
eager for the lives and property of those who fell into their 
hands. On his way down the river Mr. Kincaid was attacked 
and captured by one of these marauding parties. He was 
bound and carried off to their village. Here a guard of 
about five and twenty men formed in a ring was set around 
him. Every morning a portion of the band departed on 
some expedition of cruelty and wrong, and returned in the 
evening to exhibit their prisoners and their spoil. Many 
were the frightful scenes to which Mr. Kincaid was witness. 
Just outside the ring by which he was enclosed, met the 
council of chiefs, before whom the prisoners were brought 
up. Their great difficulty seemed to be to know how to 
dispose of him. If they killed him, it was argued that 
search would be made, and reparation demanded for the life 
of the " white foreigner." If they released him, he would 
tell of the deeds he had witnessed and of the treatment to 
which he had been subject, and again nothing but difficulty 
and danger would ensue. In this way their counsels were 
divided, and day after day passed by, and found them unde- 
cided, and life or death trembled in the balance. Mean 
while God was working out a way of deliverance. In the 
number of the guard was a young Cathay chief, who viewed 
the captive with compassion. Probably he had heard him 
tell the wondrous story which had attracted so many listen- 
ers. The face, at all events, was familiar to Mr. Kincaid, 



PERILS AND DELIVERANCE. 81 

and there was a look of pity in those dark eyes which 
awakened hope, and spoke of sympathy. One day, when 
unobserved by the others, he slipped his brawny hand into 
that of the captive, and deposited a small silver coin. The 
impulse was to decline the proffered kindness, but the quick 
" Hush !" in the Burnian tongue, " you may want it," silenced 
him. That evening the Chiefs assembled as usual, and 
amongst the prisoners brought before them, was a Burman 
woman carrying an infant in her arms, and followed by a 
young girl, her daughter, and two other little ones. There 
was a nobility in her step, and a lofty courage on her brow, 
which seemed for a moment to awe into silence the perse- 
cutors. She was interrogated as to where her property and 
her jewels were concealed, and threatened with death if she 
would not confess, but she was immovable, and was ordered 
to receive the lash. In vain were the cries of the frantic 
children who clung around her, or the supplication and 
entreaties of the elder girl ; there was no heart to pity there. 
The back was uncovered, the massive hair fell heavily over 
one shoulder, and the executioner with a heavy bamboo cane 
did his work. Stroke after stroke descended. The lips 
moved not : no cry was uttered ; but a cloud passed over the 
upturned face, and she sank to the ground motionless : all 
was over ! The captive, who had watched that scene till 
reason reeled, and the brain was fired, was only brought to 
consciousness by finding that the strong arms were pinioned, 
and he sank back in the agony of despair. That night when 
all were sleeping round him, the young Cathay chief loos- 
ened his bonds, and, stealing gently through the dusky 
forms, Mr. Kincaid was once more a free man breathing the 
free air of heaven. His journey onward was most perilous ; 
hiding by day, he had to travel on by night, and when 
pressed by hunger, waiting at the wells in the early raorn- 

4* 



82 PERILS AND DELIVEEANCE. 

ing, until the women came to draw water, he would throw 
himself on their compassion, and was seldom refused the 
nourishment which enabled him to pursue his journey. In 
this way, after innumerable dangers, from 'which the hand of 
Grod alone delivered him, he reached the capital in safety. 
He found it in confusion and alarm, and threatened with the 
horrors of a civil war. Prince Tharawaddy had dethroned 
the King his brother, and was investing the city. The mis- 
sionaries vainly hoped that the new King might be more 
favorable to their views ; but in their first interview, he 
strictly prohibited the work in which they were engaged ; 
and, seeing no hope of pursuing it in the present excited 
state of the country, they retired for a season to Maulmain. 



THE MISSION IN AEEACAN. 83 



CHAPTER V. 

AEEACAN. 

" Tell them that near your idol dome, 

There dwells a lonely man, 

Who bade ye take this message home, 
" Six men for Arracan." — Thurby. 

Before proceeding, we must endeavor to take a brief sur- 
vey of the Mission in Arracan. This province is bounded 
on the north by Chittagong, on the east by the Yoma moun- 
tains, while on the south and west, it is washed by the wa- 
ters of the Bay of Bengal. It belonged formerly to the Bur- 
man Empire, but was ceded to the British Government in 
1826. 

Mr. and Mrs. Comstock were the first of the American 
Mission who established themselves in Arracan, at Kyouk 
Phyoo, a town near the northern extremity of Bamree Is- 
land. This was in the year 1835. Preaching and schools 
were commenced, and the people listened with interest and 
curiosity. In consequence of the ill-health of some, and the 
death of others who joined the mission, it passed through a 
series of most trying vicissitudes for the first five years, 
when, in 1840, it was strengthened by the arrival of Mr. 
Kincaid and Mr. Abbott from Burmah. They had been com- 
pelled to leave their field of labor there, in consequence of 
the persecutions to which their presence subjected the con- 
verts, but they determined nevertheless to keep up commu- 
nication with their suffering flocks : Mr. Kincaid with Ava» 



84 THE MISSION COMMENCED. 

and Mr. Abbott with the scattered disciples in the districts 
of Bassein and Kangoon. 

After visiting the missionaries at Ramree, Mr. Kincaid 
went to Akyab. Here, since the year 1826, Mr. Fink of the 
Serampore Baptist Mission had been laboring, and both here 
and at Cruda little churches had been formed. When- how- 
ever the stations supported by'the Serampore Mission were 
made over to the Baptist Missionary Society, it was resolved 
that Akyab should be given up to the American Mission, and 
Mr. Kincaid took charge of it on their behalf in 1840. Mr. 
Abbott at the same time selected Sandoway as being favor- 
ably placed for opening up communication with the Karens, 
who dwelt beyond the mountains of Arracan on the neighbor- 
ing districts of Burmah Proper. 

Ko-thah-byu and his family had accompanied Mr. Abbott to 
Sandoway ; and it was here, just as he had commenced to 
reap the fruit of his few months' labor in a little village in 
which he was located, that he was summoned to his eternal 
rest. He had suffered much of late years from rheumatism, 
and was often unable to walk or to rise ; but a violent cold 
settling in inflammation of the lungs, soon hurried him to 
the grave. He came to die near Mr. Abbott, and had " no 
fears ;" " As it pleases God," was the frame of his spirit. 
" No mound marks his grave, no storied urn his resting 
place ; but the eternal mountains are his monument ; and the 
Christian villages that clothe their sides, are his epitaph." 
In his beloved work he was unceasingly active even to the 
close of life, and seemed incapable of fatigue. " It was the 
death of Christ as a substitute," he used to say, with pecu- 
liar emphasis, " that laid the foundation of our hopes. It is 
because He stood in our place and suffered the penalty due 
to our crimes, that we, who believe in Him, may now be 
saved." This great truth he used to bring into almost every 



DEATH OF KO-THAH-BYU. 85 

sermon ; so that those who were converted through his in- 
strumentality, had usually a thorough knowledge of the 
doctrine of justification by faith. His success as an evan- 
gelist was most remarkable. " Perhaps not one in a thou- 
sand from the days of the Apostles to the present time, of 
those who may have devoted their whole lives exclusively to 
this work, have been the instrument of converting as many 
individuals as this simple hearted Karen." But it may be 
asked, how was it that a man of such inferior power should 
have been such a Boanerges, as a preacher of the gospel 1 
His strength was in prayer \ He was pre-eminently a man of 
prayer. " Of myself I am nothing, and can do nothing. In 
the name of the Lord, I can do all things." It was this feel- 
ing of self distrust, combined with simple faith in the 
promise, that drew him to the mercy-seat, and kept him there. 
When not employed in preaching he spent his time almost 
exclusively in prayer and reading. " It was," says one who 
knew him well, " his practice, to read and pray aloud, though 
in a low tone of voice ; so that I have known him spend 
whole days in this way. After evening worship he would 
commence again ; and continue until nine, ten, and even 
eleven o'clock at night, when he would retire ; but not spend 
the whole night in sleep. At the time I knew him, he used 
seldom to spend a night without praying as many as three 
times, or at least as often as he awoke ; and I have heard it 
said of him that he has occasionally spent whole nights in 
prayer to Grod." Is it then a matter of wonder that such a 
man should be honored of his Grod ; that he should have 
souls given him for his hire ; that he should preach with de- 
monstration of the Spirit and with power ? 

"In 1828 he was the first Karen Christian. In 1840, 
when he died, there were officially reported as members of 
Christian congregations in Pegu, above one thousand two 



5b ME. ABBOTT AT SANDOWAY. 

hundred and seventy individuals of that oppressed and de- 
spised race." 

On arriving at Sandoway Mr. Abbott sent out two native 
assistants to the Karens to tell them of his arrival, and to 
invite them to visit him. They were also commissioned to 
search for the young men who had been studying with Mr. 
Abbott at Rangoon, and to beg them to come and continue 
their studies at Sandoway. The news soon spread that the 
teacher had arrived, and was located on the other side of 
the mountains, and within their reach ; and although the 
passes were guarded by Burmans, many escaped their 
watchful vigilance, and nocked over the mountains, some for 
books, some for baptism, and others desiring to remain and 
study with their beloved teacher. Many of the converts 
from Maubee, Pautanau, and even from the neighborhood of 
Rangoon found access to the missionary, and from them he 
was able to gain intelligence of others, and from time to 
time to hear of the wonderful progress of the gospel amongst 
the people. Many of the assistants believed that at that 
time there could not have been less than four thousand 
Christians in Burmah Proper ; and although persecutions 
abounded, grace to endure abounded also, and fines and im- 
prisonment were borne meekly and patiently for the sake of 
Him who had borne so much for them. 

The Burman Magistrates began to find that the work was 
beyond their control, and in some instances said, " Let them 
worship their God, if they pay their taxes and obey the 
laws." This policy was followed to prevent the Karens 
emigrating in a body into the British Provinces. 

In a tour made by Mr. Abbott in January, 1841, he met 
large numbers of Karens who had come from the Burman 
side of the mountains, who told him of the sufferings they 
had endured for reading the " white book." He was sur- 



KABXN CHRISTIANS PERSECUTED. 87 

prised at the amount of knowledge and intelligence which 
they possessed, and within a month he baptized fifty-seven 
persons, who gave every evidence of true conversion. In 
the following year still more fruit was found, churches 
formed, assistants placed over them, and nearly 300 admit- 
ted into the church by baptism. In this manner Mr. Ab- 
bott saw the cause to which he was devoted, everywhere 
triumphant, and though obliged to conduct the mission unas- 
sisted and alone, he beheld over the fields which it occupied 
a whole people turning to God. Within the period of five 
years three thousand were baptized. 

During the cold season of 1842-43, in consequence of a 
royal order to exterminate the white people, and the religion 
of the foreigners, the persecution of the Karen Christians 
raged with unmitigated fury. In their homes and in their 
places of worship vvhole families were seized, and often 
cruelly beaten ; while mothers separated froni their chil- 
dren, were driven like sheep to prison, where they remained 
until they could satisfy the rapacity of the Burnian officers. 
Mr. Abbott in writing of them says: " The noble, fearless 
testimony which those prisoners bear to the truth, has given 
their cause notoriety and character. The common people 
throughout the country generally look upon the new reli- 
gion with interest at least, and ivhisper their sympathies 
with its suffering votaries." 

So severe were the trials of this period that hundreds left 
the fields they could^no longer cultivate, and fled across the 
mountains into Arracan. Whole villages would follow their 
pastor, bringing their buffaloes, and any small articles they 
could carry. Their condition was most pitiable, and met 
with generous sympathy, not only from the missionaries, but 
from the British residents in the province. Captain Phayre, 
the Assistant Commissioner, supplied them with food, and 



88 DEATH OF MRS. ABBOTT. 

gave them one year to repay his loans without interest. And 
now, though in part dependent, they were at least secure, 
and enjoyed the priceless privilege of " Freedom to worship 
Grod." But their trials had not ended here. In the hot 
season which succeeded their arrival, the cholera laid waste 
the country, and so panic-stricken were these suffering peo- 
ple, that many fled to the mountains, and others to the jun- 
gle, where they perishednncared for, by the very pestilence 
they sought to escape. 

The anxieties and labors of Mr. Abbott told heavily upon 
him. In the summer of 1844, both his children were taken 
from him, and in the January following, after a short illness> 
Mrs. Abbott followed them to their early grave. 

Mrs. Abbott had been unwearied in her efforts for the sal- 
vation of the Burmese, with whose language she had become 
well acquainted. Taking her seat in the verandah of her 
house fronting the wayside, with a bundle of tracts and 
Scriptures, she would read and explain to all who might be 
disposed to listen. Occasionally a large group would sit in 
silence for hours, and some received into their hearts that 
truth which was able to save their souls. But her work was 
ended ; the Master's call had come ; and Mr. Abbott left 
alone, shattered in health and spirits, was compelled to re- 
turn for a season to America. 

Contemporaneously with this work at Sandoway, was the 
labor of Mr. Kincaid, at Akyab. He found on going there 
in 1840, the remnant of a little church, numbering thirteen 
members vfhich had been gathered by Mr. Fink. They had 
been so long without any pastoral care, that even the first 
principles of the gospel were beginning to fade from their 
minds, and to have little influence over their lives. They 
were soon, however, gathered together for instruction 
and prayer ; and the missionary, ere long, had the joy of 



THE KEMMEE3. 89 

finding himself surrounded with intelligent listeners, some 
eagerly inquiring to be more perfectly instructed in the way 
of life. Among the number was a man of superior learning, 
who, not many years before, had been sent by the King of 
Ava as a Buddhist missionary to Arracan, to explain the sa- 
cred books to the priests and people. Several persons were 
at this time baptized, and trial and persecution followed ; 
but notwithstanding this, the church grew, and another was 
planted at Cruda an out-station five days' journey from 
Akyab. 

In the beginning of 1841, Mr. Kincaid was visited by sev- 
eral people belonging to a tribe called the Kemmees, a race 
inhabiting the mountains, and similar in habits and appear- 
ance to the Karens. One of chiefs also visited the white 
teacher. He was at the head of several subordinate clans, 
and was known as the " mountain chief.''" They listened 
with but little interest to the teacher's words, and left, ap- 
parently unaffected by the great truths they had heard. 

Not many months had passed away after this visit, when 
Mr. Kincaid was surprised by receiving a letter signed by 
" Chetza, the mountain chief," and thirteen other chieftains, 
stating that they had considered the new religion, and as 
their people were ignorant, they desired that the teacher 
would come, that they might " know the true God, and be 
taught the true book." The letter also contained the names 
of two hundred and seventy children, whom they would 
place at school, if he would come to their mountains. So 
eager was desire for instruction that this request was soon 
followed by a visit from the chief in person, who, followed 
by a large retinue, came to the mission-house just as Mr. 
Kincaid and Mr. Stilson were about starting for their villages. 

Great was their joy at finding their request complied with. 
They hastened back to prepare, and when the missionaries 



90 SIX MEN FOE ARE AC AN. 

reached their mountain homes, they found, to their surprise, 
not only a zayat erected for their accommodation, but many 
little articles which the observant eyes of the people had 
noticed in the mission house at Akyab, and which they had 
procured for the comfort and convenience of their welcome 
guests. The chief offered to build a house for the mission- 
aries, if they would but remain ; but this was impossible, and 
a few occasional visits were all that could be accomplished ; 
sickness again interrupted this interesting work, and Mr. and 
Mrs. Kincaid were obliged for a time to visit America, leav- 
ing Mr. Stilson at Akyab. 

Dark clouds were beginning to break over the Arracan 
mission. Since 1840 Mr. and Mrs. Comstock had been 
laboring with no common zeal at Kamree. He was a man of 
superior education, and of the noblest qualities of character, 
distinguished for his wisdom, earnestness, and zeal. Mr. 
Kincaid took home the Comstocks' two elder children, and 
while staying with them before embarking, Mr. Comstock 
used all his powers to impress Mr. Kincaid with the import- 
ance of urging upon the church the duty of sending out 
more missionaries to Arracan. So deep rooted was this de- 
sire in his heart, that even when parting with his beloved 
children, it burst forth in that long remembered message to 
the American churches: " Remember, brother, six men for 
Arracan !" It was on these few words, that the following 
verses were written. 

He fa'd, — My brother when you stand 

Beyond the raging deep, 
In that delightful, happy land, 

Where all our fathers sleep ; 

When you shall hear their Sabbath bell 

Call out their happy throngs, 
And hear the organ's solemn swell, 

And Zion's sacred songs : 



DEATH OF MISSIONARIES. 91 

Tell them a herald", far away, 

Where midnight broods o'er man, 
Bade you this solemn message say, 

" Six men for Arracan." 

While in that happy land of theirs, 

They feast on blessings given, 
And genial suns and healthful airs, 

Come speeding fresh from heaven ; 

Tell them, that near yon idol dome, 

There dwells a lonely man, 
Who bade you take this message home, 

*■ Six men for Arracan." 

Sweet home, — ah, yes ! I know how sweet, 

Within my country, thou, 
I've known what heart felt pleasures meet, 

I've felt — and feel them now. 

Well, in those lovely scenes of bliss, 

Where childhood's joys began, 
I'd have you, brother, tell them this, 

" Six men for Arracan." 

Oh ! when the saint lies down to die, 

And friendship round him stands, 
And faith directs his tearless eye, 

To fairer, happier lands — 

How calm he bids poor earth adieu 

With all most dear below ! 
The spirit sees sweet home in view, 

And plumes her wings to go ; 

Stop dying saint — ! linger yet, 

Aud cast one thought on man — 
Be this the last that you forget — 

" Six men for Arracan." 

In the beginning of 1843, Mrs. Comstock fell a victim to 
an epidemic then prevailing ; her two little ones soon sank 



92 POSITION OF THE VAKIOUS MISSIONS. 

under the same disease, and at the end of 1844, Comstock 
himself followed them, to his great reward. His loss to the 
mission was irreparable : his sound discretion, and deep de- 
votion of spirit being felt throughout ; but " shall not the 
Judge of all the earth do right V 7 Thus, one after another 
of the missionaries, who for nine years had been laboring in 
Arracan, disappeared from the field, until Mr. and Mrs. Stil- 
son in 1845, found themselves the solitary workers in that 
mission which had so justly created the highest hopes, and 
which apparently only needed additional laborers to ensure 
for it the noblest results. 

We add now a brief review of the state of the missions at 
the other stations about this period. We find at Maulmain, 
in 1840, Dr. Judson, Messrs. Howard, Stevens, Osgood, and 
Simons, in connection with the Burman department, and 
Mr. Vinton with the Karen. The wives of the missionaries 
were more or less actively engaged in the schools, either for 
the Karens or Burmans. At Amherst, Mr. Haswell was 
still preaching to Talaings, or Peguans, or translating the 
New Testament into their language, while Mrs. Haswell 
pursued her work in the schools. Around Maulmain were 
several smaller stations for the Karens, superintended by 
the missionaries, but primarily under the charge of native 
assistants. 

At Tavoy, although there was a small Burman church, the 
chief labors of the missionaries were amongst the Karens. 
Mr. and Mrs. Wade, and Mr. and Mrs. Mason, were now the 
only missionaries at this station, the Bennetts having had to 
revisit America/ The churches at the out-stations round 
Tavoy, eight in all, numbered four hundred and seventy- 
three members. In connection with this branch of the mis- 
sion was the important station of Mergui, under the care of 
Mr. Ingalls and Mr. Brayton, who with their families hafl 



POSITION OF THE VARIOUS MISSIONS. 93 

been laboring there since 1839. Here too were out-stations, 
and little flocks of Christians gathered from among the 
heathen into the fold of God ; and here, silently, earnestly, 
faithfully, had the work of God been carried on. 

At the close of 1842 six churches were connected with 
this station, embracing 190 members. Mr. Ingalls and Mr. 
Brayton, besides preaching the gospel, devoted themselves 
to improving the special and domestic condition of the Ka- 
rens, helping them to establish themselves in permanent 
homes, and thus to break off their wandering habits, which 
were so injurious to their civilization and spiritual improve- 
ment. The fact that there were Christian teachers at Mer- 
gui, became known to the Karens in the jungles east of 
Tenasserim, and many of these came in to see and hear for 
themselves. Thus the work of God grew ; a new impulse 
was given to the cause of education ; the social position of 
the Karens was elevated ; and some of them were appointed 
to offices of trust. 

At Maulmain Dr. Judson still devoted his principal atten- 
tion to a careful revision of the Burman Bible, at the same 
time preaching to the Burman church, and superintending the 
labors of the native preachers, who were employed among 
the Burman population of the town and the neighboring vil- 
lages. Mr. Stevens superintended the theological school, 
besides being pastor of the church of Pwo Karens at Dong- 
yan ; and Mr. Howard and Mr. Simons took the English ser- 
vices, and had charge of other schools at Maulmain. This 
disposition of their labors left none free to give his undivi- 
ved attention to preaching the gospel to the Burmans, and 
was, we believe, a subject of regret. The Karen missiona- 
ries, on the contrary, from the peculiar character of the peo- 
ple, and the circumstances in which they were placed, were 
able not only to superintend the schools, and translate and 



94 POSITION OF THE VARIOUS MISSIONS. 

prepare books, but to give a large portion of their time and 
attention to their chosen work of preaching the gospel. The 
dry season of each year was spent in visiting the villages in 
the jungle for this special work, while in the rainy season 
they resided in town, teaching the schools, writing for the 
press, and preaching on the Sabbath and on other days of the 
week. This constant proclamation of the gospel by the 
preacher's own voice, has undoubtedly been the instrument 
blessed of God above all others to the conversion of this peo- 
ple : a fact which every year's experience more fully illus- 
trates. The universal cry with them appears to be " How 
beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bring- 
eth good tidings, that publisheth peace ; that bringeth good 
tidings of good ; that publisheth salvation." 



95 



CHAPTER YI. 

THE JUDSONS. 

" All flesh must come 
To the cold tomb ; 
Ody the ashes of the just 
Smell sweet and blossom in the dust." 

In 1841 Dr. Jitdson's health became seriously impaired, 
while that of Mrs. Judson and the children was also failing, 
and a voyage to sea became imperatively necessary. They 
left Maulmain in June and arrived in Calcutta in the follow- 
ing month ; but while waiting for a vessel to take them to 
the Isle of France, the youngest child Henry was suddenly 
removed from them, and now sleeps beside Carey, Marshman, 
and Ward, in the burying-place at Serampore. The voyage 
to the Isle of France recruited their failing health and 
spirits, and they returned to Maulmain in December. 

Dr. Judson immediately entered upon a work he had long 
been meditating, the preparation of a dictionary in English 
and Burman for the purpose of facilitating the acquisition 
of both these languages. In writing of this, he says : " Sev- 
eral years were spent in translating the Bible, and several 
more in revising it, and carrying the last edition through the 
press : after which, in May last, I commenced a dictionary 
of the language, a work which I had resolved and re-resolved 
never to touch. But it is not in man that walketh to direct 
his steps. The Board and my brethren repeatedly urged 
me to prepare a dictionary, the one printed in 1826 being 



yb THE BURMESE DICTIONARY. 

exceedingly imperfect; and as Burniah continued shut 
against our labors, and there were several missionaries in this 
place, I concluded that I could do no better than to comply. 
We are apt to magnify the importance of any undertaking 
in which we are warmly engaged. Perhaps it is from the 
influence of that principle, that, notwithstanding my long- 
cherished aversion to the work, I have come to think it im- 
portant ; and that, having seen the accomplishment of two 
objects on which I set my heart, when I first came out to the 
East, — the establishment of a church of converted natives, 
and the translation of the Bible into their language, — I now 
beguile my daily toil with the prospect of compassing a 
third which may be compared to a causeway, designed to 
facilitate the transmission of all knowledge, religious and 
scientific, from one people to the other." 

Mrs. Judson's pen was at this time not idle, but was also 
adding to the store of Burman literature, notwithstanding 
the many duties which crowded round her. With her 
" whatsoever her hand found to do" was done earnestly and 
with a ready will. It mattered not whether in the Karen 
wilderness surrounded by many a listener, or teaching the 
infant at her knee, or bending over her translations, or 
whispering those words which were to cheer her husband's 
heart, whether teaching, counselling, or praying, — all was 
done as to the Lord, and to the glory of His great name. 
Some of the literary performances of this closing part of ber 
life are thus briefly mentioned by Dr. Judson : — " Her trans- 
lation of the Pilgrim's Progress, Part I. into Burmese, is 
one of the best pieces of composition which we have ye f 
published : her translation of Mr. Boardman's ' Dying 
Father's Advice,' has become one of our standard tracts : 
and her Hymns in Burmese, about twenty in number, are 
probably the best in our chapel Hymn-book, a work which 



97 

she was appointed by the mission to edit. Besides these 
works she published four volumes of Scripture Questions, 
which are in constant use in our Sabbath-schools. It has 
been remarked that the translation of the Pilgrim's Progress 
into an Eastern tongue, is ' a work worth living for, if it 
were one's only performance.' It was indeed a laborious 
work, under the circumstances exceedingly laborious ; and 
is performed as enly one who knew and loved the language 
as she did, assisted by her native genius, could perform it. 
She also contributed some valuable articles to the Burmese 
newspaper ; and in the absence of Mr. Stevens, its excellent 
and able conductor, she was two or three times called upon 
to take the editorial charge of it. Her Sabbath cards with 
the breathings of her devotional and poetic spirit yet warm 
upon their surface, (her last dying gift to the Burmau 
church,) are still circulated from hand to hand: her Scrip- 
ture Questions furnish hundreds of bewildered minds with 
the clue to many a fountain, flowing over with the fresh 
waters of truth and wisdom, and her sweet hymns are heard 
wherever the living God is worshipped in Burmah." 
■ She avoided society, because it interfered with important 
pursuits, but she still had warm friends beyond the pleasant 
missionary circle. Their sympathy and love were not, how- 
ever, her sweetest reward. In April, 1844, she thus writes : 
— "The state of religion is now very interesting in the 
Burman church. It would do your heart good to look in 
upon our little circle of praying Burman females ; so hum- 
ble, so devout, so willing to confess their faults to God and 
before one another, that I sometimes think Christians in a 
Christian land might well copy them. I think they do strive 
to walk in the footsteps of our blessed Saviour. The study 
of the Scriptures and social prayer seem to be greatly bless- 
ed to their souls. Some of them have formed themselves 

5 



y» MRS. JILDSON S CLASSES. 

into a Bible class, and meet with me once a week for the 
purpose of studying the Scriptures. They are now examin- 
ing the ' Life of Christ,' with questions which I prepared 
on the work some years ago. I think it doss my own soul 
good, thus to ponder over the life of our blessed Lord. 
This Bible class has increased from about five to upwards 
of fifteen within the last month, and I see no signs of the 
members diminishing. Some of them are quite elderly 
women with grey hair. You would be pleased to see them 
with their spectacles on, sitting in a circle, reading the life 
of our Lord Jesus Christ, and conversing with each other 
respecting their duty. One of them, upwards of seventy 
years old, amused me a few days ago, by saying she was the 
same age as my little daughter Abby Ann. I asked her 
what she meant by that. She replied that she was convert 
ed the year Abby Ann was born, and it was not till then 
that she began to live." 

In one of her last letters she says, " It is nineteen years 
last month since I bade adieu to my, native land ; and I can 
say, with unfeigned gratitude to God, that amid all the 
vicissitudes through which I have been called to pass, I have 
never for one moment regretted that I had entered the mis- 
sionary field. We are not weary of our work ; it is in our 
hearts to live and die among these people. I feel conscious 
of being a most unworthy and unprofitable servant , and I 
often wonder that my life has been spared, while so many, 
to human view so much more competent than myself, have 
been cut down. Even so, Father, for so it seemeth good in 
thy sight." 

The disease, from which she had long suffered, had at last 
taken so firm a hold, that they were compelled to contem- 
plate a voyage to America as the only hope of prolonging a 
life inexpressibly valuable. Followed by many a tearful 



MBS. JTJDSON 3 ILLNESS. 99 

eye and prayerful heart, they set sail on the 26th April 
1845, taking the three elder children, while the three little 
ones were left behind, the youngest only three and a half 
months old. " We left them," as Dr. Judson touchingly 
expressed it, " cast upon the waters, in the hope of finding 
them, after many days." On arriving at Port Louis, the 
health of Mrs. Judson appeared so decidedly to improve, 
that Dr. Judson determined to return to Maulmain, and to 
leave her and the children to prosecute their voyage to 
America alone. 

It was in anticipation of this separation that Mrs. Judson 
penned the following lines : the last ever written by her 
trembling hand. 

" We part on this green islet, love, 
Thou for the eastern main, 
I for the setting sun, love — 
Oh, when to meet again ? 

My heart is sad for thee, love, 
For lone thy way will be ; 
And oft thy tears will fall, love, 
For thy children and for me. 

The music of thy daughter's voice 
Thou ? lt miss for many a year ; 
And the merry shout of thine elder boys 
Thou'lt list in vain to hear. 

When we knelt to see our Henry die 
And heard his last faint moan, 
Each, wiped the tear from other's eye — 
Now each must weep alone. 

My tears fall fast for thee, love, 
How cau I say, farewell ? 
But go ; — thy God be with thee, love, 
Thy heart's deep grief to quell '. 



100 

Yet my spirit clings to thine, love, 
Tby soul remains with me, 
And oft we'll hold communion sweet 
O'er the dark and distant sea. 

And who can paint our mutual joy 
"When, all our wanderings o'er, 
We both shall clasp our infants three, 
At home, on Burmah's shore. 

But higher shall our raptures glow 
On yon celestial plain, 
When the loved and parted here below, 
Meet ne'er to part again. 

Then gird thine armor on, love, 
Nor faint thou by the way, 
Till Budh sball fall, and Burmah's sons 
Shall own Messiahs sway." 

The anticipated sacrifice was not permitted. The revival 
was deceptive, and together they again set sail " for the set- 
ting sun," in hope that life would be granted ; but still 
strength declined until they reached St. Helena, when she 
gently passed away on the 1st of September, 1845. Dr. 
Judson says, " Heaven seems nearer and eternity sweeter, 
when I think of her and other dear friends who have gone 
before They had prepared the grave in a beau- 
tiful shady spot contiguous to the grave of Mrs. Chater, a 
missionary from Ceylon, who had died in similar circum- 
stances on her passage home. There I saw her safely de- 
posited, and blessed God that her body had attained the re- 
pose of the grave, and the spirit the repose of paradise 

For a few days in the solitude of my cabin, with my poor 
children crying round me, I could not help abandoning my- 
self to heart-breaking sorrow. But the promises of the gos- 
pel came to my aid, and faith stretched her view to the 



RETURN. 101 

bright world of eternal life, and anticipated a happy meeting 
with those beloved beings whose bodies are mouldering at 
Amherst and St. Helena." 

Dr. Judson arrived at Boston on the 15th October, and 
was received by the whole Christian church with the ex- 
pression of the warmest sympathy and attachment ; but he 
shrunk from popular applause, and the more his brethren 
were disposed to exalt him, the more deeply did he seem to 
feel his own deficiency, and the more humble was his pros- 
tration at the foot of the cross. He still suffered so much 
from the complaint in his throat he was quite unable to ad- 
dress large audiences, but the impression left upon the 
minds of those who did hear him, was that to him, " to live 
was Christ, to die was gain." It it was quite evident that al- 
though interested in all that he saw in his own country, his 
heart was in Burmah, and that he longed to resume his quiet 
labors there for the salvation of the heathen. He married Miss 
Chubbuck, distinguished for her literary talents, and sailing 
from America on the 11th July, 1846, arrived at Maulmain 
on the 30th November following. They were accompanied 
by several new missionaries ; Mr. and Mrs. Harris, who were 
appointed to the Karen department of the mission at Maul- 
main, and subsequently to Shwaygyeen ; Mr. and Mrs. 
Beecher, who were destined for Arracan ; and Miss Lilly- 
bridge who was to be a teacher in the Burman school at 
Maulmain. During the absence of Dr. Judson many chan- 
ges had occurred. Mrs. Helen Mason and Mrs. Ingalls had 
been removed by death ; and Mr. Ingalls had gone to Akyab 
to fill the vacancy that had been made by the removal of 
Mr. Stilson to Maulmain. At Akyab Mr. Ingalls had com- 
menced the work of preaching. His house was thronged by 
visitors from morning till night: Some came expressly to 
hear the gospel, some to dispute and oppose. A chapel was 



102 PROGRESS AT AKTAB. 

built close upon the public streets, and the word, notwith- 
standing the hardness of the hearts of the people, took ef- 
fect. Within two months, fifteen converts were baptized at 
Akyab, among whom were five Kemmees, the first-fruits 
among that people. The principal employment of Mr. 
Ingalls and his assistants was " preaching the word," and 
after a residence of fourteen years in Burmah, Mr. In- 
galls reported he had never seen the prospects so encour- 
aging. He says : 

" The work is going on among the Kemmees, and souls are 
being converted. I have twenty here in a day-school. The 
Kemmee chief, with many of his tribe, dressed in their rude 
clothes, came with a long petition, saying, • Come and preach 
to us, and tell us of Him who came to save us.' Glory be 
to God, even with the Arracanese, these hard people, are 
seeking the way to heaven. I preach until my lungs are 
almost worn out. Karens have come to my school from 
Sandoway, as their teacher (Mr. Abbott) has gone to America. 
Cholera has now come, and our Christians are being called 
home. Several have died. One poor man, as his limbs be- 
came cold in death, reached me his only rupee, and said, 
' Teacher, put this in for the building of our chapel.' And 

then he closed his eyes Baptized some to-day and 

buried some. I have no fears for those in the grave, but 
I have anxieties for the others, for their temptations are 
great in this place." Early in the year 1850, Mr. Ingalls 
had to abandon this interesting work for a season, and to 
return to America. 

On Dr. Judson's return to Maulmain, he found all the 
departments of labor there well supplied. In Rangoon there 
was not a single missionary nor in all Burmah proper, and 
he therefore determined, if possible, to find an entrance and 
shelter there for himself and his family, and once more to 



RANGOON. 103 

attempt to gather the little flock together. A large dilapi- 
dated house in a street of Mussulmans was at last obtained, 
his family were around him and the dictionary re-commenced. 
At their first communion, ten Burmans, one Karen, and two 
foreigners were present. In writing home at this time, Dr« 
Judson says : "I have just returned from baptizing a Bur- 
man convert, in the same tank of water where I baptized 
the first Burman convert Moung Nau, twenty-eight years 
ago. The present administration of Government, though 
rather more friendly to foreigners, is more rigidly intolerant 
than that of the late King Tharawaddy ; any known attempt 
at proselyting would be instantly amenable at the criminal 
tribunal, and would probably be punished by the imprison- 
ment or death of the proselyte, and the banishment of the 
missionary. The Governor of this place has received me 
favorably, not as a missionary, though he well knows from 
old acquaintance, that that is my character, but as a minister 
of a foreign relio-ion, ministering to foreigners resident in 
that place, and a dictionary-maker, ' laboring to promote the 
welfare of both countries.' Our missionary efforts, there- 
fore, being conducted in private, must necessarily be very 
limited. It is, however, a precious privilege to be allowed 
to welcome into a private room a small company, perhaps 
two or three individvals only, and pour the light of truth 
into their immortal souls ; souls that, but for the efficacy of 
that light, would be covered with the gloom of darkness, 
darkness to be felt to all eternity." 

Things were thus going on when Dr. Judson learned that 
a private order had been issued to watch the missionary's 
house, and apprehend any who might be liable to the charge 
of favoring " Jesus Christ's religion." This of course put a 
stop to any further effort, and Dr. Judson determined once 
more to visit Ava to solicit toleration from the Government. 



104 LAST ILLNESS OF BR. JTJDSON. 

But funds were wanting from the mission treasury, and the 
object had to be abandoned ; he returned with his family to 
Maulmain, and employed himself without intermission upon 
the Burmese dictionary until the month of November, 1849- 
He was then seized with a violent cold, followed by an attack 
of fever of a much more serious character than any from 
which he had before suffered. A trip down the coast afforded 
partial relief ; but he was again prostrated, and it was evi" 
dent that his life was drawing to a close. We cannot forbear 
giving a few extracts from Mrs. Judson's account of his last 
days— but we earnestly recommend Dr. Wayland's Memoir 
of Br. Judson, to the careful perusal of all those who have 
not yet read it. Mrs. Judson remarks, " Being accustomed 
to regard all the events of this life, however minute or pain- 
ful, as ordered in wisdom, and tending to one great and 
glorious end, he lived in almost constant obedience to the 
apostolic injunction, ' Rejoice evermore !' He often told 
me, that although he had endured much personal suffering, 
and passed through many fearful trials in the course of his 
eventful life, a kind providence had also hedged him round 
with precious and peculiar blessings, so that his joys had far 

out-numbered his sorrows As his health declined, 

his mental exercises at first seemed deepened ; and he gave 
still larger portions of his time to prayer, conversing with 
the utmost freedom on his daily progress, and the extent of 
his self-conquest. Just before our trip to Mergui he looked 
up with sudden animation and said to me earnestly, ' I have 
gained the victory at last. I love every one of Christ's re- 
deemed, as I believe He would have me love them, in the 
manner, though not probably to the same degree as we shall 
love one another in heaven ; and gladly would I prefer the 
meanest of his creatures, who bears his name before myself.' 
This is said, in allusion to the text ' in honor preferring one 



LAST ILLNESS OF Dll. JUDSON. 105 

another,' on which he had frequently dwelt with great em- 
phasis From this time no other word would so well 

express his state of feeling as that one of his own choosing 
— peace. He had no particular exercises afterwards, but re- 
mained calm and serene, speaking of himself daily as a great 
sinner, who had been overwhelmed with benefits., and declar- 
ing that he had never, in all his life before, had such de- 
lightful views of the unfathomable love and infinite conde- 
scension of the Saviour as were now daily opening before 
him. ' Oh, the love of Christ ! the love of Christ !' he would 
suddenly exclaim, while his eye kindled, and the tears chased 
each other down his cheeks, ' we cannot understand it now — 
but what a beautiful study for eternity !' " 

After their return from Mergui, sea air and sea bathing 
were recommended, and they went for a month to Amherst, 
but he rapidly declined, and on returning to Maulmain a sea 
voyage was ordered as the only hope of recovery. Mrs. 
Judson, who was not in a state to accompany him, was 
anxious to ascertain before he left her, his own opinion with 
regard to his state. She says : " I could not bear him to go 
away without knowing how doubtful it was whether our next 
meeting would not be in eternity." The question was sug- 
gested : Is it your wish to recover ? " If it should be the 
will of God, yes. I should like to complete the dictionary 
on which I have bestowed so much labor, now that it is so 
nearly done ; for though it has not been a work that pleased 
my taste, or quite satisfied my feelings, I have never under- 
rated its importance. Then after that, come all the plans 
we have formed. Oh, I feel as if I were only just beginning 
to be prepared for usefulness." 

"It is the opinion of most of the mission," Mrs. Judson 
remarked, " that you will not recover." "I know it is," he 
replied ; " and I suppose they think me an old man, and 

5* 



106 LAST ILLNESS OF DK. JUDSON. 

imagine it is nothing for one like me to resign a life so full 
of trials. But I am not old, at least in that sense ; you 
know I am not. Oh, no man ever left this world with more 
inviting prospects, with brighter hopes, with warmer feel- 
ings." His face was perfectly calm, even while the 

tears broke away from the closed lids and rolled one after 
another down to the pillow. To some suggestions which his 
wife ventured to make, he replied, " It is not that, I know 
all that, and feel it in my inmost heart. Lying here on 
my bed when I could not talk, I had such views of the 
loving condescension of Christ, and the glories of heaven, 
as I believe are seldom granted to mortal man. It is not 
that I shrink from death, that I wish to live, neither is it 
because the ties that bind me here, though some of them are 
very sweet, bear any comparison with the drawings I at 
times feel towards heaven ; but a few years would not be 
missed from my eternity of bliss, and I can well afford to 
spare them, both for your sake, and for the sake of the poor 
Burmans. I am not tired of my work, neither am I tired 
of the world ; yet when Christ calls me home, I shall go with 
the gladness of a boy bounding away from his school. Per- 
haps I feel something like the young bride when she con- 
templates resigning the present associations of her childhood 
for a yet dearer home, though only a very little like her, for 
there is no doubt resting on my future." " Then death 
would not take you by surprise, if it should come even be- 
fore you got on board ship ?" " Oh no," he said, " death 
will never take me by surprise, do not be afraid of that : I 
feel so strong in Christ. * He has not led me so tenderly 
thus far, to forsake me at the very gate of heaven. No, no ; 
I am willing to live a few years longer, if it should be so 
ordered ; and if otherwise, I am willing and glad to die 



HIS DEATH. 107 

now. I leave myself entirely in the hands of God, to be 
disposed of according to His holy will." 

And now came the final parting. He was carried to the 
ship, and left in charge of Mr. Eanney and one of the Bur- 
man converts, who were to accompany him ; and little more 
than a week after he embarked, on the 12th April, 1849, he 
slept in Jesus. 

During the last hour Mr. Ranney bent over him, and held 
his hand, while poor Panapah stood at a little distance 
weeping. The table had been spread in the cuddy as usual, 
and the officers did not know what was passing in the cabin, 
till summoned to dinner. Then they gathered about the 
door, and watched the closing scene with solemn reverence 
Now, thanks to a merciful God : his pains had left him ; not 
a momentary spasm disturbed his placid face, nor did the 
contraction of a muscle denote the least degree of suffering ; 
the agony of death was past, and his wearied spirit was 
turning to its rest in the bosom of the Saviour. From time 
to time he pressed the hand in which his own was resting, 
his clasp losing in force at each successive pressure ; while 
his shortened breath — though there was no struggle, no 
gasping, as if it went and came" with difficulty — gradually 
grew softer and fainter, until it died upon the air, and he 
was gone, Mr. Ranney closed his eyes, and composed the 
passive limbs ; the ship's officers stole softly from the door, 
and the neglected meal was left upon the board untasted. 

They lowered him to his ocean grave. And there they 
left him in his unquiet sepulchre : but it matters not, for 
while the unconscious clay is " drifting on the shifting cur- 
rents of the restless main," " nothing can disturb the hal- 
lowed rest of the immortal spirit. Neither could he have a 
more btting monument than the blue waves which visit every 



108 

coast ; for his warm sympathies went forth to the ends of 
the earth, and included the whole family of man." 

Thus lived and died the " apostle of Burmah.' ; " He 
mastered its language," said Dr. Mackay, one of the Calcutta 
missionaries who specially revered him, "he made it his 
own and smoothed its difficulties for his successors. He 
translated into the language of the people the whole word of 
God, with such skill, patience, and judgment, that his ver- 
sion bids fair, in the opinion of competent judges, to be the 
standard Bible of Burmah. He made the first Burman con- 
verts, and gathered together the first Burman congregation 
of Christians ; and, with full assurance that the good seed 
had taken root, and would spring up vigorously in the land 
of his adoption, he died ' in his harness,' young in spirit, but 
ripe in years and honors. He stood out as the most remark- 
able man in the modern era of missions. Tried by every 
vicissitude of humanity, he came forth like pure gold : 
chained in a dungeon, and face to face with the executioner, 
or swimming on the topmost wave of popularity, the idol of 
all that was holy and good in his native land ; in the extremes 
of household happiness, and household bereavements ; driven 
again and again, as it seemed for ever, from the mission 
field, or rejoicing over his little flock and his completed 
Bible ; in the pulpit, on the platform, or in cheerful social 
intercourse, Adoniram Judson was always true to his own 
high nature, combining the warm affections of a man, with 
the strength, simplicity, and directness of an apostle of the 
living G-od." 

His uncompleted work of the dictionary was taken up by 
Mr. Stevens of the Maulmain mission, who, with great 
patience and perseverance, brought it to a conclusion in 
1852, and thus completed a work which will be of lasting 
value to every student of Burmese. 



NATIVE PASTORS NOMINATED. 109 



CHAPTER VII. 

NATIVE PREACHERS. 
" He gave some Evangelists." — Eph. iv. 2. 

It will be well for us now to take a glance at the various 
mission stations, in order to trace the progress that, under 
the divine blessing, was being made in one of the most in- 
teresting departments of labor. In all was felt the increas- 
ing value of the Native Assistants and pastors. Some are 
mentioned in reports from different quarters in terms of the 
highest commendation. 

The nomination of pastors to the office was generally ef- 
fected in the following manner. A number of baptized 
Christians, living in the same village or vicinity, would 
select from among their own number a man to conduct public 
worship and discharge pastoral duties, and call him 
" teacher." Almost invariably he proved to be the best 
adapted for the work, by age, intelligence, and piety. With- 
out further formalities, this band of Christians was called a 
church, and the man their pastor. The pastor generally 
pursued a course of study with the missionaries, during 
which period his character and qualifications became known ; 
and if approved, he would be appointed an assistant. The 
standard of moral purity among the Christians is very high, 
and in two instances, individuals have been cut off from 
communion and fellowship, by the unanimous vote of the 
native assistants themselves. The readiness with which 



110 THE PASTOR, WAH DEE. 

ministerial support has been supplied by the native churches 
is most encouraging, as also the manner in which the pastoral 
relationship has been in general sustained. 

Writing from Sandoway in 1351, Mr. Beecher says of the 
" Great Plains :" " This church has bean greatly afflicted in 
the sudden death of its pastor, Wah Dee, while on a preach'ng 
tour in Burmah. His memory was held in most affectionate 
remembrance. Wah Dee, though dead, ' has become a sweet 
smelling savor,' was the remark of the aged headman of the 
village. A great improvement had been made during the 
past three years in his village. The houses arranged in rows 
and built with care, — the ground under and around, free 
from rubbish and often swept, — the little plots of vegetables 
well cultivated and fruitful, — the thriving nurseries, the 
streets wide and straight and mostly bordered with fruit 
trees and flowers, whose fragrance filled the air, all done by 
Wah Dee, all planned and directed by Wah Dee, altogether 
formed a spot lovely and pleasant. The outward condition 
of the people was a fair representation of their spiritual 
state. Their many and severe afflictions, (for many have 
befallen them,) have been sanctified to their growth in 
grace ; and a degree of intelligence and spirituality are ex- 
hibited which far exceeded expectation. Arrangements are 
made to supply the place of the pastor by his son, a A^outli 
of great promise, the headman meanwhile continuing to aid 
in conducting worship and watching over the members." 

Again, writing of Thay Bau, he says : " The people of 
this village have exhibited much of Christian enterprise in 
building it, and are advancing in civilization as well as Chris- 
tianity. Four years previously, the place was a dense wilder- 
ness, but the rice field has appeared instead of the jungle ; 
and where, a few years since, roamed herds of wild elephant, 
Christians now walk in company to the house of God. The 



TILLAGE OF THAT EAU. Ill 

prosperous appearance of the people is here also attributable 
in a marked degree to pastoral influence. No native preach- 
er has a greater or better influence abroad, and none is more 
beloved and respected at home. As we passed by or enter- 
ed his room from day to day, and saw Tway Poh, — the Rev. 
Tway Poh we should, say, for no minister was ever more 
worthy of the title than he, sitting by his table, reading and 
studying, or conversing with those who sought his advice, 
we often wished that our brethren and sisters who feel such 
an interest in this people, could experience the delight that 
we did, as the expression came involuntarily to our lips, 
How much like a pastor in his study at home ! Let the 
prayers of Christians ascend to the great Head of the church, 
j;hat he will raise up from among this people many such pas- 
tors as Tway Poh." 

In the early part of 1851, Mr. Van Meter gave a most in- 
teresting account of one of the annual associations, or meet- 
ings of the churches in the jungles at Thay Bau. Mr. and 
Mrs. Beecher had started in another boat to accompany him, 
but a violent storm prevented their accomplishing their ob- 
ject. Mr. Van Meter mentions the order and solemnity 
which pervaded the meeting, and the feeling of extraordinary 
interest with which he listened to the preaching from day to 
day of the native pastors. 

The details of their missionary labors and the blessing 
which had followed, were very striking. Tha Bwa had been 
the means of the conversion of a whole village, which at 
once asked for a teacher, and promised to build him a house 
to live in. On hearing this, one of the young men who had 
just commenced preaching, begged and obtained permission 
to go and labor among the people. The interest excited by 
these services was deep and solemn, there was no restless- 
ness, and during the closing prayer, there was such a marked 



112 NATIVE LABORS. 

silence, that it was evident all hearts were engaged. Just 
as Mr. Van Meter was preparing to depart, a note was re- 
ceived from the Commissioner, informing them of warlike 
preparation in Burmah. There was universal alarm among 
the Karens, and before midnight the whole company were 
prepared to separate. It was a solemn parting. Would 
they ever meet again on earth ? Would they ever reach 
their homes at all ? These were thoughts which the circum- 
stance too readily suggested, hut the eye of faith could look 
beyond the present time, and pierce the clouds which for a 
moment hid the bright future from their sight. 

In this year we have a very interesting account of the con- 
version and baptism of the first of the Khyen tribe. Mr. 
Knapp, who was now laboring amongst the Kemmees, men- 
tions a visit from a Khyen woman, who having been long a 
slave in Burmah, had at length obtained her liberty, and had 
made the home of her old age among the Kemmees. The Bur- 
man disciples had taken great pains in explaining to her the 
way of life by Jesus Christ, and she proved her sincerity by 
her earnest desire " to put her sins all away, and to be Je- 
sus Christ's disciple." When she came to Mr. Knapp she 
could scarcely speak from emotion, the tears trickled down 
her aged face, " I am in a dark wild land," she said, " but 
I don't want to live so. I want light. I want to put my 
trust in Jesus, and to be his disciple. I want to be bap- 
tized. Mr. Knapp writes, " On Sunday morning I had the 
privilege of baptizing the Khyen woman ; she gave such evi- 
dence of faith and repentance, as satisfied all the Burman 
disciples who were with me ; indeed all the evidence that 
could be hoped for. She calmly trusts in Christ, and now 
rejoices in hope of the glory of God." 

How marked are the dealings of providence in this wo- 
man's history ! Brought up a wild Khyen, carried by a 



THE FIKST KHYEN CONVERT. 113 

band of robbers into slavery, by which means she became fa- 
miliar with the Burman language, liberated by some means 
and brought among this Kemmee people, she now hears, in 
the Burman tongue, the glad tidings of salvation, believes, 
and is saved ! Thus, ' the wrath of man shall praise Him.' 
After her baptism she was constantly at the meetings and en- 
gaged in praj^er of her own accord ; was anxious to learn 
to count the days that she might keep the Sabbath holy, and 
seemed very desirous to lead others, especially women, to 
Christ ; and said she wished she could live within one hour 
or one day of the teacher, that she could hear more of the 
gospel, for it made her heart glad. May the great Shepherd 
keep her ! 

Not less interesting was the work that went on at this 
period in Tavoy and Mergui. The native assistants and pas- 
tors labored with earnestness and devotion of spirit, and 
were taught to endure hardness as good soldiers of Christ. 
One, in writing to his brethren to encourage and stimulate 
their zeal, says : 

" When we travel among the unconverted, sometimes we 
are starved, and sometimes we are sick, and then our hearts 
are troubled. Why is it so ? Because we lack love. Breth- 
ren ! We ought to think of the work of the Lord Jesus, who 
possessed love. How did he show his love, the greatest pos- 
sible exhibition of love ? By his sufferings. Now he hun- 
gered forty days, and anon he suffered pain till the perspira- 
tion rolled from him like drops of blood, and in his final 
exhibition of love he suffered death. All his sufferings 
were for our sins. Our Lord's love extended to the sacri- 
fice of his life. Now we ought to contemplate these things 
minutely, definitely, and tread in his footsteps all our lives. 
We should consider that he loved us unto death, and thus 
be led to love each other. We ought, each and every one 



114 



TAVOY ASSOCIATION. 



of us, to arm ourselves in the Lord with the doing of his 
work and prayer, The Holy Scriptures say, ' The righteous 
man's supplication from the heart overcometh much.' Now 
we must go among the heathen, and as the disciples prayed 
and exhorted on the day of Pentecost, and the Holy Spirit 
was poured out, converting three thousand persons, so let us 
call out aloud and in earnest, like the apostles of old, that 
the people may become Christians." 

Mr. Thomas, who with his wife had not long arrived in the 
country, gives a vivid description of his first impressions, 
on visiting the jungle. " The tour has been most refreshing 
to our souls. During the seven months since we arrived in 
Tavoy, we had been cooped up in this city, where the multi- 
tudes seem as mad upon their idols as if no missionary had 
ever visited these shores. But in visiting the jungles, we 
passed from the sight of idols and the tumult of their wor- 
shippers into quiet Christian villages : where, instead of 
gorgeous kyoungs, we found modest Christian chapels, in 
which, instead of idols and altars strewn with tinsel offer- 
ings or smoking with incense, are roughly-wrought tables 
bearing the Holy Bible and hymn book. Instead of being 
tormented by the dismal sound of instruments in honor of 
Gaudama, we joined a happy people in their songs of praise 
to Christ. I do bless God that I have witnessed the fulfil- 
ment of this his gracious promise, ' The wilderness and solita- 
ry place shall be glad for them, and the desert shall rejoice 
and blossom as the rose.' The most interesting feature of 
our tour was the Association of the churches of the Tavoy 
and Mergui provinces, at Ongpong. There the native Chris- 
tians met, mingled their greatings and songs of praise, and 
joined in spirited discussions on subjects most intimately 
connected with the interests of the Kedeemer's kingdom in 



1 



RULES OF CONDUCT. 115 

these provinces. In all their exercises nothing but a spirit 
of love and harmony was manifest. What hath God wrought!" 

At this Association the following resolutions were submit- 
ted by the Karen Christians for their mutual adoption. 
They were believed to have originated ^with the natives 
themselves, and what is here given is a literal translation. 
Another resolution pledges Christian parents to discourage 
the marriage of their children before they arrive at mature 
age. The contrary practice which did prevail, was most in- 
jurious. 

" ' 1. We will avoid that superstitious forsaking of prop- 
erty [such as quitting a house because a person has died in 
it, and a thousand things of that kind,] which was practised 
by our ancestors, but is contrary to the Scriptures. 

" l 2. We will avoid all vain oaths, particularly such as re- 
fer to the name of God. 

" ' 3. We will avoid all attempts to frighten our children 
into obedience by telling them what is not true [as, that 
some fearful thing will happen to them, a tiger will bite 
them, &c] ; also, we will endeavor to avoid all kinds of de- 
ception, and lying words. 

" ' 4. We will avoid all kinds of vain and foolish songs, 
such as the heathen use, to excite their passions. 

" ■ 5. We will avoid all kinds of personal contests, as 
wrestling, betting, &c. 

w ' 6. We will avoid all charms and amulets and all those 
supposed medicines which the heathen regard as securities 
against superstitious ills ; tattooing, <fcc. 

" ' Avoiding all these, we will endeavor strictly to obey the 
commandments and doctrines of the Holy Scriptures. And 
every custom or practice which we find contrary to the 
Holy Scriptures, whatever it may be, we will be contrary 



116 KULES FOR WORSHIP. 

unto it, and carefully avoid it. Whatever cannot be found 
in the Holy Scriptures shall not be reduced to practice.' 

" In regard to public worship ; 

" ' 1. When we assemble for worship in the sanctuary, we 
will sit down in silence and wait for the communication of 
the word of God from the teacher. 

" ' 2. When the gong sounds to indicate the hour of wor- 
ship, we will immediately drop all work or employment, and 
repair at once to the sanctuary or the house of prayer. 

" ' 3. All kinds of worldly talk, as of buying and selling, 
seeking food, &c, we will avoid on the Sabbath in our meet- 
ings for the worship of God. 

*' ' All these obligations we will be careful to observe as 
long as we live. We are, according to the Scriptures, chil- 
dren of the light, and we will walk in the light. We will 
faithfully watch, as the Scriptures have taught us. Every- 
thing which tends to debase us, everything which is unholy, 
everything which will grieve or hinder the Holy Spirit, every- 
thing which brings darkness upon the kingdom of God, we 
will avoid. We will never permit any of these to enter our 
practice.' " 

The preceding sketches present a view of the mission as 
it appeared just before the outbreak of hostilities in Pegu. 

At that time a fiery trial fell upon the infant churches of 
that province. The Christian Karens were known to bear 
no allegiance to Burmese rule, and were held responsible 
for the war. In many parts ruinous taxes were levied upon 
them, their worship was forbidden, and their chapels were 
destroyed. Many were imprisoned as hostages for peace, with 
the threat that on the first invasion by the English, they 
should all be put to death. The appearance of the English 
happily caused so dire a panic, that the prisoners escaped 
without harm, but after a little space the courage of their 



PERSECUTION IN PEGU. 117 

oppressors revived. Burman troops and hordes of lawless 
robbers, ravaged the country, burning and pillaging in all 
directions, and torturing and killing the defenceless villa- 
gers. Goaded by suffering to an unwonted degree of cour- 
age, the Karens prepared to repel force by force. They 
were disarmed by the Burmans at the commencement of 
hostilities, but they took the field with what weapons they 
could procure, obtained further supplies from the English, 
and acted with bravery and effect. In several skirmishes 
they defeated their enemies with inconsiderable loss to them- 
selves ; in some others they were less successful. 

The occupation of Pegu by the English interposed only a 
partial check upon the ruinous disorder. The delay inci- 
dent to military operations in such a country, gave time for 
fresh outbreaks of violence and rapine, some details of 
which are too terrible to relate, but the final expulsion of 
the Burmese force terminated this state of anarchy, and at 
last gave quiet to the land. Immediately on the estab- 
lishment of the English at Bassein, the peculiar claims 
of the Karens to protection were regarded by the 
Commander. One of their own head men, known as the 
" Young Chief," was made their Chief Magistrate. A pious 
officer obtained from Maulmain a box of books to distribute 
among them ; and Mr. Abbott, who had now returned from 
America, and Mr. Yan Meter, embracing the earliest oppor- 
tunity to visit them, arrived at Bassein on 12th July, 1852. 
They were received with demonstrations of joy by the Ka- 
rens, and the news of their arrival brought numbers from 
all parts to see their teachers, many to see them for the 
first time. Soon after they landed, they had an interview 
with a company of native preachers, who gave a minute ac- 
count of their sufferings and necessities. The following ac- 
count of the martyrdom, during the war, of one of their pas- 



118 THE MAETYE THAGUA. 

tors, written in Burmese by a Burmese doctor, an eye-wit- 
ness and a heathen, is most affecting. 

" Thagua, pastor of the White Book people in the vicinity 
of Bassein, was taken by the Burman Magistrate, on the 
accusation of having called in the English to take their 
country. They seized him and his son and struck him thirty 
lashes on his way to prison. The son they struck twenty-five 
lashes. A nephew also was beaten. They took him to the 
Governor and paid 30 Us. to the ruler. Now these Burmans 
were agreed in killing all the disciples, but waited a little 
to get money. They said to the Governor, These white 
book men will come and kill you as they did the chiefs in 
Rangoon. The Governor then said, ' Seize them !' So they 
seized the pastor and forty of his people, and hooked them 
together with iron hooks. Then they liberated the old men, 
and told them to go and get 130 Bs. and they should be free 
again. The elders did so, and paid the 130 Us., but the 
Burman Kala did not free them, but hooked them again. 
The next day he dragged out Thagua the pastor, and struck 
him twice, then pressed him between bamboo, then tied him 
by the neck to a mango tree, his hands tied behind to the 
tree. Thagua cried out, ' My lord, my lord, do you kill 
me ?' Kala answered : ' Give me 170 Bs. and you shall be 
free.' 

" Thagua replied : ' I have no silver, my lord.' 
" The Magistrate answered : • The disciples give you 100 
Bs. per year.' 

" ' No, my lord. They never gave me so much.' 
" Then said Kala to the disciples : ' Give his ransom, and 
take your leader, and all shall be peace. If not, we will 
slaughter him.' 

" The disciples said : ' My lord, if his life may be 
spared we will give the money.' The 170 Bs. were given, 



THE MARTYR THAGUA. 119 

but still they did not free him. Then Kala led them all 
back to the village of Pataw, and gave the pastor into the 
hands of the Judge. The Judge reviled him, saying : 

" ' If your God is Almighty bid him take you out of these 
hooks.' 

" Thagua replied ; ' If the Eternal God does not now save 
me from your hands, he will save me eternally in the world 
to come.' The Judge asked, ' How do you know that V 

" Thagua replied : ' God's Holy Book tells me so, and it 
is true.' 

" The Judge replied : ' Yes, you teach the people this 
book, and because you are talented and cunning the white 
men come and take our country.' 

" Then the Judge himself fell upon him, mad with rage, 
and beat him with the elbow severely, then hooked him with 
five pairs of hooks, and ordered him back to prison. 

" Three days after, the Judge again dragged up Thagua 
and said : ' Your God you say can save you. Read his book 
before me now.' 

" Thagua replied : ' Though I read you will not believe, 
but persecute me still. But the Eternal God, my Judge 
and your Judge, the Lord Jesus Christ, he will save me.' 

"' Command Him then to save you from my hands now!' 
said the Burman. 

" The chief Judge then beat him with a cudgel as large as 
his wrist thirty blows, then ordered him back to prison with 
very little rice. Two days after Kala went to this Judge, 
and Thagua asked him, ' My lord, what do you V 

" ' Kill you every one,' he replied, and kicked him as a 
horse kicks. 

"Then said Thagua: ' We cannot live,' and dropped his 
head. 

" Then said Kala to the Judge : 



120 PROGRESS AT BASSEIN. 

" ' Kill these men, and I will give you a viss of silver.' 

" ' If I kill them I cannot endure the punishment, (as the 
consequence,)' said the Judge, but took the silver, 

" A day or two after, Kala went and gave him fifty rupees 
more, but the Judge said : ' If you will marry your daughter 
to my son I will kill them.' 

" Then Kala replied : ' Brother, I will marry them.' 

" Then the Judge said : * If I do not destroy them the 
white people will come and take our lands and kill us every 
one.' Then he scourged pastor Thagua three times. 

" Thagua said : ' If because I worship G-od you torture 
me, kill me at once I entreat you.' 

" They then took him, struck him sixty times, fastened 
him to a cross, shot him, embowelled him, and cut him in 
three pieces." 

But besides, these atrocities, they had to tell of the ravages 
of cholera, by which many had been swept away, of whom 
five were preachers. One of them was Myat Kyau, the first 
Karen ordained to the ministry, who had been deputed at a 
time when no European missionary could enter the country 
to organize the disciples in Burmah proper into churches, 
and baptized in his first tour fifty persons ; the number that 
afterwards received the rite at his hands appears to have 
been little short of one thousand. 

Some Burman kyoungs at Bassein having been fitted up 
for a chapel, a school and a mission house, the missionaries 
were literally thronged with visitors for several weeks. 
There was no lack of persons anxious to become pupils in 
the schools ; the difficulty was to select from the mass the 
limited number it was practicable to receive. The compa- 
nies that came daily were of all classes, Sgaus and Pwos, 
heathen and christian, members of churches, and disciples 
who had embraced the truth but had never been baptized, 



THE HISTORY OF MY AT KYATJ. 121 

because no ordained minister, foreign or native, had visited 
them. All equally regarded the foreign teachers as their 
friends; the heathen, on being questioned, declared that they 
had continued such only because they had no teacher. Thus 
there was no want of work to be done, and that of the most 
delightful kind, teaching those who were thirsting for in- 
struction in the truths and duties of Christianity. 

The prostration of Mr. Abbott's health in September 
which enforced his removal, together with the tumultuous 
state of the country, demanded the dismissal of the school. 
The Karens took leave of their beloved teacher with inex- 
pressible grief, " sorrowing most of all for the foreboding 
that they should see his face no more." Mr. Van Meter was 
left alone for some time, when Mr. Beecher joined him. The 
succeeding months were months of terror to the people, and 
of anxiety and unremitting labor to the missionaries. But 
with the return of peace came the returning prospect of en- 
gaging anew in the quiet exercise of their duties. 

In 1852, we find mention of the death at Maulmain of the 
Burman convert Myat Kyatj,* the first Talaing preacher of 
the gospel. He came to the grave at the advanced age of 
seventy-six, full of years and of grace, after a long and sted- 
fast course of usefulness. By birth he was a Buddhist, and 
connected with persons of rank and influence amongst his 
countrymen, his brother being the Governor of Shwaygyeen 
under the Burman Government, and himself the Collector of 
taxes among the Karens of the Shwaygyeen districts. 

Being a man of superior intellect and education, and hav- 
ing a very thoughtful and inquiring mind, he searched deeply 
into the claims of Buddhism, and came to the conviction 
that the religion of his fathers was a baseless fabric. There 

* Mentioned in Mr?. Wade's letter. 
6 



122 THE HISTOKY OF MYAT KYAU. 

can be little doubt that his intercourse with the Karens had 
made him acquainted with their traditions of an Eternal 
God, the Creator of all things, not liable to change, decay, 
death or annihilation, and probably these wonderful traditions 
had shaken his false confidences, and raised the spirit of 
inquiry in his mind. From that time he began his search 
after truth, but it was many a weary year before the true 
light shone upon his path. He, at this time, became ac- 
quainted with a Brahmin ascetic, and, being struck with his 
supposed sanctity and devotion, became his disciple and fol- 
lower, and for two or three years, practised various austeri- 
ties. As the real character of the Gooroo developed before 
him, and he became convinced that his teacher was but a 
polluted and sinful man like himself, he fled from him in 
disgust and disappointment, and returned to his family and 
friends. But his spirit was not at rest. Like Noah's dove 
he could find no place for the sole of his foot. " There must 
be a revealed religion," he said ; " that I knew where I 
might find it," was the language of his heart. 

In this state of mind he entered a Muhammedan mosque, 
and heard of " one God and Muhammad his prophet." The 
idea of one eternal, unchangeable, omniscient Being, the 
Creator of all things, struck his mind. It was a ray of light 
shining in through the dark clouds of heathenism which sur- 
rounded him. The same idea he had conceived from the 
traditions of the Karens, but they had no sacred writings, 
they could give no account of this great Being, and no in- 
struction as to the worship he expected from his creatures. 
It was with intense interest that he listened to the Koran, 
expecting to find in it some revelation of the way in which 
he might obtain divine light and favor, but he was disap- 
pointed, it was not there, and the only spark of light which 
was reflected from the Koran was this : ' There is one God.' 



THE HISTORY OF MTAT KYATT. 123 

He returned from the mosque dissatisfied, but determined 
to follow on to know the Lord, whose goings forth had been 
prepared as the morning. He was leading his servant by a 
way he knew not to the true refuge of his soul. 

He was next attracted by a Roman Catholic chapel and at- 
tended the services. There for the first time he heard the 
name of Christ as the Saviour of men, but was also directed 
to pray to the Virgin Mary and to worship her as the mother 
of God, and to seek the intercession of Peter and an endless 
succession of saints. This appeared to him to be but an- 
other form of heathenism. The worship of the Virgin was 
particularly offensive, and he said, " If I must worship a 
human being as God, I would rather worship Gaudaina, a 
man, than this woman. And as for Roman images, I cannot 
see that they have any more claim to divine honors than 
Burnian images." 

A long period of darkness and distress succeeded, and 
Myat Kyau almost despaired of ever finding that divine 
knowledge which he so earnestly sought. In 1824-7 he and 
his family came to Maulmain in consequence of the war, and 
it was from similar causes that Dr. Judson and Mr. Wade 
came there also. Myat Kyau and his brother the late Gover- 
nor of Shwaygyeentook up their abode not far from the zayat 
at which Dr. Judson was accustomed to preach. His brother 
was at this time one of the chief men in the employ of the 
English Government. He took but little notice of the 
foreigners or their teaching, but Myat Kyau, on the contrary 
was found at the zayat amongst the most interested of the 
inquirers. The previous discipline through which God had 
brought him, had prepared his mind for a ready reception 
of the great truths of the gospel, and when he heard that 
Jesus said, " If any man thirst let him come unto me and 
drink," his thirsty soul, which had long panted for this water 



124 THE HISTORY OF MY AT KYAU. 

of life, drank, and drank freely. Day after day he was at 
the zayat from morning till night. One prejudice after an- 
other melted away, cloud after cloud dispersed, until the 
Sun of righteousness arose with healing in his wings, and 
he stood forth a new creature in a new world. The Holy 
Spirit had convinced him of sin, righteousness and judg- 
ment, and of the love and power and grace of Christ as the 
Saviour of sinners. 

It needed no power of eloquence to arouse him, or of ar- 
guments to persuade him. The pearl of great price was 
within his reach, and he resolved to part with all to obtain 
it. He soon found that nothing less would do. His family, 
who had observed the change that was taking place were 
roused to the most determined opposition and hatred of the 
truth. His brother told him plainly that he would disown 
him, his wife that she would abandon him if he were bap- 
tized, his two sons and an adopted son that they would no 
longer call him father. None of these things moved him, or 
caused him for one moment to waver in his determination to 
follow Christ. 

Wife and children were dear as a right hand or a right 
eye ; but Christ was infinitely dearer. He was all his sal- 
vation and all his desire. " If friends forsake me because 
I adhere to Christ,'' he said, "I cannot discard Him for 
their sake. His is the only name given under heaven 
among men whereby we must be saved. I will persuade 
them if possible to become His disciples. I will pray for 
them. Perhaps God will give them light to see their need 
of Christ ; but if not, they must take their own course ; I 
cannot follow them in the way which leads to eternal death." 

For several months the trial was indeed severe, and he 
had to endure all the anguish of spirit of one cast out and 
forsaken by those so dear to him, but the Lord stood by to 



125 

strengthen and sustain him, and he found in Jesus the friend 
that sticketh closer than a brother. His heart yearned for 
his beloved wife and children, and he never ceased to plead 
with God until she and one of his sons, and his adopted son 
were not only reconciled to his profession of Christianity, 
but became themselves followers of the lowly Jesus. 

Immediately after his own conversion, Myat Kyau, com- 
menced earnestly laboring for the salvation of others, and it 
became evident to Dr. Judson and Dr. Wade that he was 
eminently fitted to be a true helper in their work. From 
that time forth he continued to testify the gospel of the 
grace of God to his countrymen during a long course of 
years, with unabating energy and zeal, until total blindness 
and the infirmities of age entirely disabled him. Many 
were the fruits of his labors, not only among the Burmans 
and Takings, but also among the Karens. His labors were 
not confined to Maulmain, but almost every village and 
hamlet in the province heard the gospel from his lips. For 
several years he accompanied Dr. Wade in his excursions 
among the villages, performing the double service of assist- 
ant, and steersman of the boat, nor did he ever shrink from 
performing the smallest service which could render him more 
efficient in their minsionary tours. 

He was prominently instrumental in bringing the Karens 
to the notice of the missionary. His office as Collector of 
Customs amongst them had made him familiar with their 
character and language, and as they travelled among the 
Burmans and Talaings, and observed their bigotry and blind- 
ness, he would often reiterate, " The Karens are not like the 
Buddhists ; they have no idols, no priests, and if the teacher 
would go and preach to them, gi;eat numbers would listen 
and believe the gospel.'* He so constantly reverted to this, 
that it led to Dr. Wade's visit to Dongyan, which we have 



126 HIS CHARACTER. 

already noticed in our earlier pages. After a lapse of twen- 
ty years, in visiting this station again, Dr. Wade found the 
man and his wife in whose house they had staid, both living ; 
both had become Christians with ten out of their eleven 
children. In the village was a flourishing church of eighty- 
six members. The old man and his wife had long been a 
father and mother in Israel, and spoke with affectionate re- 
membrance of Myat Kyau and of his first visit among them- 

When Dr. Wade was pursuing the important task of re- 
ducing the Karen language to writing, he received much 
assistance from Myat Kyau, more especially in his earnest 
prayers for wisdom from above to assist in accomplishing a 
work which, to his mind, seemed beyond the power of hu- 
man wisdom. 

Myat Kyau was pre-eminently a man of prayer. When 
travelling by boat as he held the helm he would constantly 
be chanting words of prayer and praise. When they stop- 
ped for the tide or to cook, and were again prepared to move 
on, he was frequently missing, so frequently that it led to an 
inquiry into the cause, when it was found that he had gone 
to some retired spot for prayer. Sometimes he was known 
to have continued whole nights in prayer without being aware 
of the lapse of time, till the cock-crowing reminded him that 
day was breaking. He continued to go daily to the zayat to 
preach some time after he had lost his sight, getting a child 
to lead him, and at length, when he was disabled from the 
increasing infirmities of age, he would sit in his verandah 
testifying to the love and faithfulness of God his Saviour to 
all whom he could induce to listen. 

His liberality abounded to the last, even out of his deep 
poverty. His allowance as an assistant had ceased, and as 
he had only saved a hundred and fifty rupees, the interes ot 
which was all his support, he was often reduced to extreme 
poverty. It so grieved Dr. Wade to see the good old man 



HIS DEATH. 127 

struggling with want in his last days, and unable to procure 
the commonest necessaries of life, that he obtained some 
means for his relief, for which he manifested the deepest 
thankfulness. Notwithstanding his great poverty he would 
give four annas per month out of his pittance, for the sup- 
port of a native preacher employed by the church. His 
wife told him one day, when the subscription list came round, 
that they were so poor he had better save the four annas for 
his ovvn use. " No," he replied, " I can bear retrenchment 
on my daily food, but I cannot be deprived of the luxury of 
giving something to sustain the cause of Christ." And he 
continued to give his mite to the last. Such was the beauti- 
ful consistency of his Christian character that from his bap- 
tism to his death, both the missionaries and his fellow disci- 
ples testify that he ever walked worthy of his high calling, 
" in good report and evil report." For the last two years of 
his life he was very feeble, and totally blind, yet every com- 
munion Sabbath found him at his place commemorating the 
dying love of Christ his Saviour. 

During his last days the powers of nature were so exhaust- 
ed that he could say but little, but his heart responded to the 
mention of that Name which is above every other name, and 
it was evident he united in prayer, after it was thought he 
had ceased to be conscious. He had no fear of death, but 
longed to depart and be with Christ, and with teacher Jud- 
son and his fellow-disciples who had gone before, and the 
whole assembly of the glorified. As long as he could speak 
he ceased not to warn and exhort, especially his sons, who 
had both turned aside from the right way, and " though dead 
he yet speaketh." 

A large concourse of all classes, both Christian and hea- 
then, attended his funeral, and followed his remains to their 
last resting place. Truly " the memory of the just is 
blessed." 



128 THE MISSIONARIES AT RANGOON. 



CHAPTER Till 



THE ANNEXATION OF PEGU. 



" The Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whom- 
soever He will." — Dan. iv. 32. 

In March, 1851, Mr. Kincaid and Dr. Dawson proceeded 
to Rangoon, and having effected an arrangement for a tem- 
porary residence, removed their families thither in the fol- 
lowing April, proposing to ascend to Ava at the close of the 
rainy season. On their first arrival, all seemed dark and 
dreary. Many had said, " You are going into the lion's 
mouth, what good can you expect to do under a government 
so relentless and hitter towards foreigners V And the 
worst fears of the timid seemed to be but too well-founded. 
Mr. Kincaid was declared a prisoner, and forbidden to speak, 
or to walk beyond the limits of his own dwelling, without 
the surveillance of a Burman officer. Such was the state of 
things in April. Notwithstanding these hostile orders, the 
missionaries commenced dispensing medicines, and instruc- 
ting all who came to the mission house ; and on the 3rd of 
May, a royal message from the Court of Ava reached them, 
bidding them welcome, and expresing the hope that they 
would remain in the empire. From that time they labored 
without molestation ; hundreds thronged to hear the word of 
God, and several distinguished and influential priests occa- 
sionally visited them. No doubt this fact imparted to the 
most timid a feeling of security in resorting to the missionary 
teachers. One day a Poongyee or priest, of considerable in- 



VISIT OF A PRIEST. 129 

fluence, called at the mission house with a number of his 
pupils or noviciates. When the time had arrived for the 
preaching to commence, he was invited to sit down, but po- 
litely asking to be excused, he expressed a wish that the 
young priests might go up and listen, saying, that he would 
wait for them below, where he was sitting. Opening a Bi- 
ble which was handed to him, he promised to read it till the 
service was ended. Ko En, the native preacher, conducted 
the service, and preached nearly an hour ; while the .young 
Poongyees sat patient and attentive listeners. When Dr. 
Dawson returned to the priest, the latter was asked to give 
back the copy of the Bible he had been reading.- When told 
that the Governor had forbidden them to give away books, 
but that he might read it as long as liked, he took up a vol- 
ume of tracts that was on the mat before him, and running 
his eye over some of its pages, he said there were some 
things he wished to copy, and he wanted to know if they 
would lend it. " Certainly," was Dr. Dawson's reply. Ap- 
parently much gratified, he rolled it up in a handkerchief, 
and gave it to one of his attendants to carry to the kyoung. 
He then urged the missionaries to pay a visit to nis monas- 
tery. His readiness to send his pupils, to listen to the 
preaching of the gospel, was a remarkable proof of liberal- 
ity in a Buddhist priest, who lived under the very shadow 
of the great Shway Dagon Pagoda. 

When the Christian Karens heard that the missionaries 
were at Rangoon, they soon came in little companies to visit 
them, and were incessantly in prayer that they might not be 
driven from the country again. Many touching notices of 
them occur in the journals of Mr, Kincaid and Dr. Dawson. 
One writes : " I feel ashamed when I look on this people so 
full of faith and stedfastness ; so certain that a day of de- 
liverance is at hand, that the empire of darkness will be 

6* 



130 TRIALS OF KAREN CONVERTS. 

overturned. The seal of God is on this people. Every- 
where among them there is a spirit of inquiry, and the Lord 
is raising up men of strong faith for the work of the minis- 
try. While the Burmans are groping their way amidst the 
darkness of Pantheism, and are toiling under the weight of 
a superstition more degrading than Popery, the Karens are 
inquiring for God's book, and the God of the Bible is their 
refuge." 

As we have seen, some of the principal Poongyees of the 
place visited the mission house, sometimes for medicine, 
sometimes for a friendly call. The kindly disposition thus 
exhibited encouraged the missionaries to visit them at their 
monasteries. There they conversed fully on all subjects, 
freely admitting that in regard to " worldly knowledge," 
meaning the arts and sciences, the white race possessed a 
decided superiority, but that in " heavenly knowledge " 
they considered they had the advantage. 

At the request of one of these men, who had been afflicted 
with hypertropsy of the nose for many years, Dr. Dawson 
went to visit him. A young Poongyee was sent -to conduct 
him to the kyoung. After rounding more than half the base 
of the hill on which stands the Shwhay Dagon, or Golden 
Pagoda, the path stretched along between two tanks beauti- 
fully fringed. with tufts of luxuriant grass, then winding 
round rather a bold eminence capped by a pagoda, it led in- 
to a grove of jack, mango, and palm trees, in the midst of 
which was situated the kyoung or monastery. 

Ascending the steps, Dr. Dawson was ushered into a large 
hall, at the further end of which sat the chief Poongyee on 
his cushioned seat upon the floor. Behind him was a screen 
that concealed from view an assemblage of fancy idols, min- 
iature pagodas, and gilt boxes containing the sacred books, 
and other valued articles. After conversing for a short time 



VISIT TO A MONASTERY. 131 

about his illness, the Poongyee expressed a wish to hear 
something of the cities, towns, and buildings, the manners 
and customs of the people in the " big island of America." 
Dr. Dawson endeavored to convey to him some correct 
idea of the continent, its relative size, its geographical posi- 
tion, and the time it would take to reach it, &c. Its happy 
and prosperous condition was traced to the Bible. A medi- 
cal college was described, the mode and object of teaching, 
and the fact that thousands of lives are saved by skill and 
care ; and above all the goodness of God was descanted on, 
as bestowing the blessing of a pure religion, the highest and 
richest gift of all. The Poongyee now thought it his turn 
to speak, and began by saying there was not much difference 
between his religion and our religion when closely compared. 
" yes, all possible difference as there is betweeen darkness 
and noon day," was the answer; "how many gods have 
you ?" " A great many." " Your Betegat says twenty- 
eight." " Yes, the Hindoos or Brahmins have many mil- 
lions, and we have many also." " Where are they all V 
" Some are now existing in other worlds, and many have 
gone to nigban" — (annihilation). " How many gods have 
you had in this world ?" " Four ; one more is yet to ap- 
pear." " The difference now between Christianity and 
Buddhism on this one point is, that while you have many 
gods, the Christian religion teaches us that there is but one 
living and true God, without beginning and without end ; 
not subject to sickness, old age, or death, like the gods wor- 
shipped by the Burmans." On inquiring if he were not the 
head man of the monastery, he replied in the affirmative. 
" Well, it is a good thing to have authority somewhere. 
Suppose there were fifty head men in this kyoung. You tell 
the boys to do one thing, and another head man commands a 
different thing, and each one something still different from 



132 WAR WITH THE ENGLISH. 

the rest. How would you all get on here?" He smiled 
and said, " That would be a bad business : all would be con- 
fusion." He felt himself in a dilemma, and flew off to the 
doctrine of merit : " Do good, and you will get good; do 
evil, and you will receive evil." . He expatiated on the merit 
to be obtained by feeding the poor, giving medicine to the 
sick, building monasteries for the Poongyees, and bringing 
them offerings. " The religion of Jesus," the missionary re- 
marked, " requires Christians to do good unto all men. If 
a servant simply does what his master has told him to do, to 
whom is it right to give the honor ?" His answer was " to 
the master." " Certainly, that is a just conclusion. When 
a follower of Christ gives his property to support any worthy 
object, he does it not to obtain personal honor or praise, but 
to glorify God." Nodding his head very significantly, he 
said these were strange things, and might be true. It was 
growing late, and the missionary retraced his steps home- 
ward. 

In October 1851, Mr. Vinton paid a visit to Rangoon, and 
had the opportunity of seeing many of the Karen Christians 
and inquirers from different parts of the country. Some- 
times fifty at a time would be present at the mission house. 
Nearly all the assistants came in for advice and instruction, 
and the earnestness with which they entreated that a teacher 
might remain at Rangoon, was very affecting, and proved 
what great importance they attached to it. The missionaries 
meanwhile were not without their difficulties. "When books 
were sent from Maulmain they were stopped at the Custom 
House, and notwithstanding Mr. Kincaid's courage and per- 
severance, it was not without considerable difficulty that a 
portion were passed through at last. But a remarkable era 
was at hand in the mission's history : the Burman yoke was 



CONSTERNATION OF THE GOVERNOR. 133 

to be broken, and free course given to the preaching and 
progress of the living word of the living God. 

One Sabbath afternoon at the end of November, 1851, a 
report spread rapidly through the city that an English steam- 
er, and three men-of-war, were off the mouth of the river. 
The Governor despatched two boats one after the other to 
ascertain the truth of the report. All was activity and bustle 
on the part of the authorities, and of earnest anxious consul- 
tation in the little groups of terror-stricken people. It was 
not long before all doubts were at an end. Two armed steam- 
ers were measuring the waters, putting down buoys and tow- 
ing up a fifty-gun ship. The excitement was very great. 
The Governor called in two or three thousand men, and be- 
gan to arm them with old rusty muskets ; the greater part of 
the night was spent in dragging worthless guns to the heights 
of the Shway Dagon Pagoda, and gathering there the treasure, 
and other property of the State. The Governor threatened 
to set the city on fire, and to seize the Europeans as host- 
ages ; all, therefore, were intent upon securing papers and 
property from the destruction that awaited them. It was 
near midnight when Mr. Kincaid and Dr. Dawson were sent 
for by the Governor, but they had scarcely set off when the 
order was countermanded. Capt. Crisp, an English mer- 
chant, was sent on board the frigate to inquire the object of 
its coming up the river. An order was issued by the Gov- 
ernor that any one, foreigner, or native, appearing on the 
wharves or river bank, should be beheaded. It was in vain 
that Mr. Kincaid remonstrated with the officers of Govern- 
ment, and suggested that there was every evidence that the 
ship had come on a peaceful mission, to prevent and not to 
make war. They felt it, but they could not but be conscious 
of the innumerable acts of injustice, and cruelty, which they 
had inflicted on all classes of the people, and they feared the 



134: MESSAGE FROM THE COMMODORE. 

time of retribution was at hand. At last the long-looked for 
ships made their appearance some miles below the city. The 
missionaries and their families went to the roof of their 
dwelling, from which they had a view of the river, and with 
emotions of joy and gratitude, saw the vessels come up and 
anchor before the oppressed city. They had seen and felt 
the insane and cruel tyranny of the Burman Government, 
and the presence of these ships spoke of peace, justice, and 
security. They could not forget the hundreds of Karens 
who had said to them : " God is our hope, and He will hear 
our prayers for deliverance." Commodore Lambert immedi- 
ately sent a message to know at what hour the next day it 
would suit the Governor to receive a communication from 
him. The Governor wished to put it off till the day follow- 
ing. So all Wednesday was spent in busy preparations for 
an ostentatious display. 

In the morning the Commodore sent Capt. Latter to re- 
quest an interview with Mr. Kincaid, and for two hours he 
was detained, answering interrogatories in reference to the 
doings of the Burman Government towards British subjects. 
" Why have not these facts been sent to the Government at 
Calcutta?" said the Commodore. "From the terror under 
which all live ; — the fact that the slightest whisper of dis- 
satisfaction would only be visited by tenfold greater outrages, 
and even, as in many instances, with cruel tortures and 
death." " this is dreadful !" he exclaimed. Capt. Crisp 
and Mr. Birrell, two English merchants were sent for. The 
statements elicited changed the current of affairs. The Com- 
modore came to demand redress for outrages committed on 
Captains Shepherd and Lewis ; but he now found that hun- 
dreds of British subjects had suffered as great, and many of 
them greater injuries, and that several had died under 
torture. 



THE GOVEENOB SUMMONS ME. EJNCAED. 135 

A deputation of four officers waited upon the Governor 
•with the Commodore's letter in English and Burmese, and 
as soon as they left, Mr. Kincaid was sent for into the Vice- 
roy's presence. He was deadly pale. His mind was so un- 
balanced that it overpowered his muscular system. His 
whole frame shook with emotion, his voice was feeble and 
tremulous, and Mr. Kincaid was almost disposed to pity the 
man who had no pity on the widow and the orphan. 

Many hurried questions were then put, but the answers 
seemed to be scarcely comprehended. At length Mr. Kin- 
caid was despatched with a message to the Commodore, but 
when half way there, he was again recalled, and ushered into 
a private room, where he found the Governor with some 
fifty chiefs around him. The Commodore's letter was again 
produced, and he was requested to say whether the transla- 
tion was correct. After carefully reading it, he assured them 
it was. 

" What does it mean ?" said the Governor. " I am ac- 
cused of being a bad man, committing outrages on Her Brit- 
annic Majesty's subjects, and yet the letter does not specify 
in what way I have done this. Tell me what I should do ?" 

" I am not competent," was the reply, " to advise in these 
matters." 

" Do not tell me so," said the Governor, " you have more 
books and maps than all the other people in the city, and 
you know what the English want, and what I can do." 

To get rid of his importunity, Mr. Kincaid replied : " You 
can write to the Commodore and ask for an explanation." 
This struck him favorably. Then he inquired whether the 
English had come for peace or war. 

" For peace undoubtedly," was the reply. " If they had 
come for war instead of three ships, they would have had 
twenty-five or thirty." At last, Mr. Kincaid was released. 



136 TYRANNY OF THE GOVERNOR. 

No person in Rangoon perhaps had spoken ont from time to 
time so freely as he had, and yet he had often done violence 
to his better feelings by restraining his indignation when 
witnessing the enormities committed by order of this man. 
He had seen upwards of a hundred British subjects in prison, 
some of them in irons, not a few in the blocks. Several had 
been cruelly tortured, two had died under torture, one of 
them a woman. But justice had at last overtaken the wrong- 
doer. The administration of the Rangoon province was, 
however, no exception to the general management of affairs 
in Burmah. The whole system of the Government was bad. 
Each man had to pay a large sum for his appointment, and 
in order to keep it, had to make large annual offerings. 
This occasioned oppression and extortion in every form. 
Every officer was a slave to those above him, and a tyrant to 
all beneath him. The people were thus ground into the very 
dust. They prayed for a change of Government, and every- 
where tyranny was triumphant and peace and security un- 
known. 

After a few days, the Governor had, in some measure re- 
covered from the panic into which he had been thrown, and 
commenced hostile preparations. He had collected from 
the neighboring villages about 10,000 men, and had invited 
to his aid a celebrated robber chief with all his followers, 
thus getting together all the desperate characters in the 
lower provinces. As yet the missionaries had felt safe in 
the old city, as the majority of the inhabitants were foreign- 
ers ; but on the 4th and 5th of December, it was reported, 
that orders were issued to attack the foreigners, to kill and 
plunder them, and to burn the city. 

Bodies of armed men of desperate character were con- 
stantly parading the streets, and Commodore Lambert invi- 
ted the mission families to take refuge in one of his vessels. 



DISORDER IN RANGOON. 137 

As the ships of war were threatened with an attack by fire- 
rafts, it was thought better that they should go on board a 
merchant ship, and on the evening of the 5th, Mrs. Kincaid 
and Mrs. Dawson and the children, were placed in safety on 
board the Duchess of Argyll. Mr. Kincaid and Dr. Daw- 
son still remained on shore, the latter to minister to the 
sick, and to attend to the few applicants who occasionally 
called at the Dispensary for relief. 

A little after dark one evening, Mr. Kincaid, when pass- 
ing along one of the principal streets, was suddenly seized 
by some eight or ten Burmans, who partly carried, partly 
dragged him into a dark narrow lane. There he was sur- 
rounded by forty or fifty armed men. A long and not very 
pleasant altercation succeeded, with threats on either side. 
They insisted on taking him to the Governor, while Mr. Kin- 
caid was equally determined to go to the Custom House, and 
succeeded, though scarcely knowing how. A bundle of clothes 
which he had with him, was the excuse for this outrage. The 
Custom House officers interfered, and after a long dispute, 
the guards went off to the Governor for orders, and the Cus- 
tom House officers hurried Mr. Kincaid to the ship. 

The Governor of Dalla received orders from Ava to place 
his troops at the disposal of the viceroy of Rangoon, and ac- 
cordingly 1500 men crossed the river early on the morning 
of the 19th, uttering the most savage yells. The only men, 
however, that the Governor could depend upon were the 
robbers and their chief. The Burman officers threatened 
the Karen Christians that they would put them into the fore- 
front of the battle, if the English came on shore. The na- 
tive churches sent messengers to the missionaries almost 
daily, to inquire how things were, and to let them know 
their position ; few ventured to sleep in their houses for 
fear of robbers. The missionaries' hearts were full of sor- 



138 THE BURMESE FOECES. 

row for them, and they could only look up and commend 
them to the care of Him whose " eyes are upon the righteous 
and whose ears are open unto their cry." — The Burmans, 
heathen as well as Christian, sent messengers expressing the 
hope that the English would pat an end to the tyranny under 
which they had so long suffered, and among the more than 
10,000 disciples, as well as the hundreds of " almost-Chris- 
tians,''" there was earnest prayer to Him who ruleth over all. 

On the 1st January, 1852, dispatches arrived from Ava, 
making professions of peace and good will that for a time 
inspired hope that war might be honorably avoided, and the 
abuses of the Rangpon Government atoned for. The policy 
of the King appeared friendly, the Governor was removed 
from that office, and the viceroy of Shway Doung appointed 
his successor. But it was soon manifest that the pacific 
messages from the capital were only a device to gain time. 
The viceroy took no notice of Commodore Lambert, and for- 
bade all communication between his vessels and the shore. 
The Commodore sent a deputation with a letter, but they 
were not permitted to enter the vice regal presence. They 
were openly insulted by the officers in attendance, and re- 
turned to the flag ship only to announce the failure of their 
errand. Upon this the foreign residents were summoned on 
board ship ; when Commodore Lambert stated, that all who 
claimed British protection must depart from the town with- 
in two hours. Dr. Dawson in writing, gave the following in- 
teresting account of the encounter of H. M .'s ships with the 
Burmese, and of their departure from Rangoon under the 
protection of the British flag. 

"Mouth of the Rangoon River, January 13, 1852. 
— Since the despatch of my last letter, we have been called 
to pass through some most exciting and melancholy scenes, 
which happily fall but rarely in the path of missionary life. 



CONDUCT OF THE NEW GOVERNOR. 139 

The destiny of Burmah seems almost sealed. Soon perhaps, 
the sceptre will depart from the hands of her kings for ever ! 
Her situation at present is exceedingly critical, and I feel 
more than I can express for her welfare. 

" On the 4th instant the new viceroy appointed to the 
charge of all the lower provinces of Burmah, from Prome 
down to Martaban, made his grand entry into the town of 
Rangoon. As near as I could learn between twenty and 
thirty war-boats filled with armed men to the number of 
three or four thousand, accompanied him down the river as 
his personal escort. A guard of honor, consisting of three or 
four hundred men of the king's troops, was sent with him 
from Ava. During the journey down he gradually received 
additions, which swelled his retinue to a considerable force. 
His state-barge was decorated in the usual style of eastern 
splendor. On landing at the wharves he was welcomed with 
every demonstration of respect both by the government of- 
ficials and the people. A long line of soldiers curiously 
dressed was paraded along the streets in the direction of 
government house, to receive him. Carpets were spread on 
the wharf for him to walk on till he ascended a buggy drawn 
by men, which had been provided to bear him to his new 
residence. A clustre of brahmins, each holding a 'horn of 
plenty,' awaited his arrival and pronounced their benedictions 
upon him. 

" According to Burmese custom, or rather, a custom in- 
troduced by the late oppressive governor, hundreds of the 
inhabitants carried their offerings to his house to furnish 
the necessary provisions for his followers. Inquiring what 
they were, he declined receiving them, saying, ■ he knew the 
people were very poor and could ill afford to spare such con- 
tributions.' By directing a discontinuance of the practice 
he won golden opinions among the masses. For two or three 



140 THE ENGLISH DEPUTATION INSULTED. 

days a continuous stream of visitors crowded to his residence. 
They were of course mostly men in authority and their atten- 
dants, whose object was to pay their respects and receive 
commands. 

" On the morning of the 6th, two days after his arrival, 
Mr. Edwards called on the viceroy with a message from 
Captain Latter, diplomatic assistant and Burmese transla- 
tor to the embassy, to say that a deputation of British officers 
would wait on him during the course of the day. The vice- 
roy replied that he declined seeing any officer but the Com- 
modore. To this he strictly adhered. The deputation, coin- 
posed of four officers from the Fox, and the Hermes, with 
Mr. Edwards as interpreter, waited on His Excellency, 
bearing with them a letter couched, it is said, in the most 
friendly terms. They reached government house soon after 
twelve o'clock. Messengers passed three or four times be- 
tween the viceroy inside and the deputation, who were kept 
standing outside in a hot sun, when it was announced that 
His Excellency was asleep. The officers proposed to go in 
and sit for a short time, but admission was denied them ; 
they could walk about outside if they chose. The officers 
retired to report the failure of their mission. The refusal 
to receive them was regarded as an insult to the deputation, 
to their flag, and to the British Government. 

" A consultation was now held on board the frigate, and 
it was decided to have no further intercourse with the vice- 
roy, unless he should first make an ample apology. Mr. Ed- 
wards was despatched on shore, to request the principal 
foreign merchants, the missionaries, and some others, to 
meet the Commodore on ship-board. In the mean time the 
English vessels lying in port, together with Chooliah, Arab, 
and Turkish vessels claiming British protection, were or- 
dered to proceed down the river to sea. During the course 



141 

of the evening most of them got under way and proceeded 
some distance below the town. On reaching the Fox we 
were informed that affairs were in such an unsatisfactory 
state, it was advisable we should all leave ilangoon without 
delay, and that the boats of the several armed vessels would 
be sent to the main wharf to protect us in getting away. No 
time was allowed the residents to remove their property. 
Thus to escape with our lives, most of us were* compelled to 
sacrifice nearly everything. Except a few suits of clothes, 
our writing desks, and a small parcel of bedding, everything 
we owned is lost ; furniture, valuable books, surgical instru- 
ments, medicines, crockery, kitchen utensils, saddlery, lin- 
en, all are gone. With the loss of all, we are thankful for 
our lives, that we are out of prison, and that our limbs are 
free of chains. 

" As the Duchess did not go far below the town that night, 
information was brought to us about ten p. m., of the Com- 
modore's intention to seize a ship called the Ya-thee-ndh- 
yai-moon, which signifies ' the most precious jewel of the 
ocean,' — belonging to the king of Burmah. This was de- 
cided on, we are told, by a council of war convened on the 
Fox. She was captured that night without firing a shot, the 
Burman crew offering no resistance. Knowing that such a 
step would render the Burmese provincial and city officers 
almost desperate, — for their heads would be in jeopardy 
under the displeasure of the king, — and that the property of 
foreigners would be more than ordinarily exposed to confis- 
cation and destruction, I resolved, late as it was, to make an 
effort to procure some of our papers and letters which had 
been deposited for safe keeping in a strong godown at Mr. 
Bin-el's house. Hiring a small canoe I pushed off for the 
shore and got to the godown by eleven o'clock. Though the 
moon shone out brightly, the whole town looked gloomy and 



142 INTERVIEWS WITH THE COMMODORE. 

deserted. Neither guard nor sentry challenged me in the 
adventure, though many entertained the opinion that to leave 
the vessel at such a time was exceedingly hazardous. Not 
being able to gert keys of the buildings I was obliged to 
climb to the roof and enter the house through a trap-door at 
the top. With a lighted candle in one's hand this was some- 
what difficult, but after some time I reached the box con- 
taining most o*f our private papers. The venture incurred 
some risk, but the object seemed worthy of an effort. While 
I was away at the godown four Burmans jumped into the 
canoe and paddled it off to the opposite side of the river. 
Providentially I was provided with another conveyance, by 
the timely arrival at the wharf of Captain Barker with one 
of the ship's boats. In the course of the night many wo- 
men and children of Burmese extraction, connected with 
foreign traders, escaped in Chooliah vessels belonging to the 
Coromandel coast. 

" About one o'clock the same night H. B. M. steam frigate 
Hermes passed down with the king's vessel in tow, and 
anchored below the Hasting sand, three miles from the town. 
At daylight the frigate Fox got under way, and drifting too 
near the Dalla shore grounded on a mud-bank, and was de- 
tained there till the next tide. While in that situation the 
governor of Dalla went on board to explain and intercede in 
behalf of the viceroy, though perhaps not officially author- 
ized so to do. A similar visit had been made by other Bur- 
man officers and the royal interpreter the day before, during 
the interview of the merchants with the Commodore, but 
without success. Before seizing the king's vessel the Com- 
modore had penned a note with the design of giving the 
viceroy an opportunity of apologizing for not receiving the 
deputation ; and he would doubtless have sent it by the 
Burman officers, but unfortunately he had the impression 



THE GOVERNOR REFUSES TO APOLOGISE. 143 

that they would not dare to carry such a message to their 
governor. Subsequently one or two more endeavors were 
made by the deputy-governor of Rangoon and the governor 
of Dalla to reconcile matters. They went on board the flag 
ship, and the latter suggested that if the king's ship were 
delivered to him it would lead to his promotion to the post 
of governor of Rangoon, when he would grant ample re- 
dress for the injuries committed by the ex-governor. But 
the Commodore remained inflexible. His terms were thart 
the viceroy should come in person, and on the deck of her 
majesty's frigate offer an apology to the oflicers who had 
been insulted. When this had been done he would be pre- 
pared to commence negotiations. These peaceful, though 
rigorous measures having failed, the Commodore determined 
to cut off all communication with the Burmans, and hasten 
to the mouth of the river with the ' prize' and all the armed 
vessels in company, pending a reference to the Supreme 
Government of India. A blockade of the Eangoon and 
Bassein rivers was proclaimed, and the brig Serpent of six- 
teen guns was ordered to a station at the entrance into the 
Bassein creek to intercept all suspicious looking boats. 

" At this stage of the business the viceroy forwarded a 
letter addressed to the Governor-General of India, com- 
plaining that the oflicers of the deputation sent to him were at 
the time in a state of intoxication. The same evening, or the 
following day, another letter was received, intimating that if 
the king's ship was moved down the river with the other ves- 
sels, orders had been given to fire on the Fox. The Commo- 
dore expressed his regret to hear it ; he certainly would not 
fire unless he were first attacked, but if a siDgle pistol were 
fired at the frigate, he would assuredly open upon them with 
his guns. Thus stood affairs between the parties before 
hostilities commenced. 



144 BURMESE PREPARATIONS. 

" On the eastern and western banks of the river, about 
ten and twelve miles below Rangoon, are two substantial 
teak wood stockades, erected several years ago by direction 
to Tharrawady, the late king, who showed quite a spirit of 
enterprise in the public improvements he effected during 
his reign. To these stockades a few cannon and a number 
of jingalls were sent late one evening by the Rangoon offi- 
cers, with a view to attack the men-of-war as they proceeded 
down the river. They were noticed as they passed our ship. 
About a dozen war-boats crowded with men were likewise 
stationed there. They took shelter up a creek behind the 
first fortification. How many men there were within^ the 
enclosures none but the Burmans themselves know. Prob- 
ably there were three or four thousand, most of them pro- 
vided with muskets, spears, and swords. On the summit of 
the palisades were guns in a position to command a section 
of the river. In two villages each contiguous to one of the 
stockades, the people were directed to arm themselves for 
the purpose of rescuing the captured ship of their sovereign. 
Such were the arrangements of the Burmese officers, who 
little understood the unequal contest in which they were 
about to engage. 

" Early on the morning of Saturday, the tenth of January, 
the vessels commenced moving down with the tide. The 
steamer Hermes towed the flag ship as far as the upper 
stockade, and then went back to bring down the ' prize.' 
Things appeared somewhat warlike, and believing that the 
Burmans for once were going to be as good as their word, 
the Fox anchored directly abreast of the fortification, beat to 
quarters, and made ready to talk loud if first addressed from 
the shore. Besides several country craft, the Mary Ha?'- 
nngton, Falcon, Ararat, and Duchess of Argyll were in the 
river. They had gained positions somewhat below the 



MESSAGE FROM THE COMMODORE. 145 

frigate, and were spectators of the painful scene which was 
then about opening. Our vessel anchored about midway 
between the two stockades, as the safest position, should the 
threatened outbreak occur. 

" Just as our anchor had fairly taken the ground, the peo- 
ple of the village contiguous to the first fort were seen 
moving about quickly on the bank and looking earnestly up 
the stream. They were watching for ' the precious jewel of 
the ocean.' Many of them were observed in the war-boats 
hid under cover of the bank of the creek. Three or four of 
the boats now moved out of the creek and pushed up past 
the Fox, keeping in close to the shore. Some of the war- 
riors were standing up, making a variety of antics and capers, 
and were heard singing a war-song. As the Hermes round- 
ed a point in the river having the king's vessel in tow, the 
knot of watchmen on the bank disappeared to give the alarm 
to the boatmen and villagers. 

" Just as the steamer came in front of the stockade, her 
bowsprit being on a line with that of the frigate, off went a 
flash and the report of a gun from the shore. Instantly many 
voices cried, ' They have fired !' Now commenced a mur- 
derous fire from the Commodore's vessel. The frigate was 
soon enveloped in smoke, her shot skimming the water and 
tearing up the bank. The stockade was shrouded in dust 
and smoke, and at times could scarcely be seen. The un- 
fortunate Burmese kept up a spirited fire for nearly two 
hours, till they were literally cut to pieces, their boats aban- 
doned, some of them drifting away and sinking, and their 
cannon dismounted and silenced. Both the steamers, the 
Hermes and Phlegethon, joined in the destructive work, and 
being able to run close in, played with deadly effect at the 
boats and up the creek, where hundreds of people were con- 
gregated. At one time during the hottest of the firing, the 

7 



146 ATTACK ON THE STOCKADES. 

poor Burmese boatmen were observed hanging on by the 
side of their boats, all but their heads under water. Soon 
they rushed up the bank, wading through the mud and flying 
before the shot, which fell like hail around them. A line of 
persons on the margin of the creek was noticed through a 
glass busily, engaged carrying off in scores the dead and 
dying. 

" Having fired a number of times, the Hermes passed on 
her way, towing the Burmese vessel. A village close to 
where the Duchess lay fired one cannon and several muskets 
at the steamer as she passed, but this was scon checked. 
Having the king's ship in charge, the Hermes was a marked 
object on both sides of the river. When they got near the 
lower stockade, which is about two miles distant from the 
upper one, a fire was opened at long range, but did no harm 
to either vessel. Both the Hermes and the king's vessel, 
which was partly manned by hands from the frigate, kept up 
a steady fire for some time on this fortification, and then 
pushed down the. stream to the mouth of the Bassein creek. 
Here they found the Serpent, and, anchoring the Yd-thee-nah' 
y&i-moon near the brig, the steamer returned to take the flag 
ship in tow. They did not leave, however, till all firing from 
both the stockades had ceased. The pinnace and launch of 
the Fox, which at one time were very much exposed, cap- 
tured two or three deserted war-boats, and having pitched 
overboard all the weapons they could find in them, fired on 
them to destroy and sink them. Thus ended the melancholy 
battle of the stockades. 

" On the side of the English not a single man was killed 
or wounded. A round shot struck a jolly-boat hanging at 
the stern of the Fox, and knocked a piece out of her bow. 
Another hit the counter of the frigate. Some musket balls 
hit her in different spots ; but she sustained no further dam- 



MARTABAN AND RANGOON TAKEN. 147 

age. A few musket balls, it is said, reached the two steam- 
ers, but did no injury to either of them. 

" Among the poor Burmans, however, the slaughter, we 
have heard, was terrible. Three hundred were destroyed, — 
and who can portray the miseries of the wounded and the 
dying, the destitution of their widows and orphans ? But I 
will not dwell upon this : it is more easily conjectured than 
described. After the battle a deputation with a flag of truce 
waited upon the Commodore, bearing a petition from the 
foreigners in prison at Rangoon, in which it was stated, that 
the viceroy was willing to accede to any terms in order to 
make peace. But it was too late. A report of the whole 
affair had been made to the Supreme Government of India, 
with whom the matter now rested." 

Thus the missionaries were again for a season driven from 
Bangoon, and compelled to take refuge at Maulmain. It was 
not long, however, before active hostilities commenced be- 
tween the British Government and the Burman. Martaban 
was taken on the 5th April. Bangoon was attacked on the 
11th, and after a most desperate resistance of nearly four 
days, .this devoted city fell before the British arms on the 
14th of April, 1852. Mr. Kincaid had gone up with the 
fleet ; and as soon as the Karen and Burmese Christians 
heard of his arrival they came flocking from their hiding 
places in the jungle to welcome him. Dr. Dawson and Mr. 
and Mrs. Vinton speedily joined Mr. Kincaid. 

Not long after, Lord Dalhousie, who was then the Gover- 
nor General of India, visited Bangoon, and we have an inter- 
esting account of the interview with which he favored the 
missionaries, from the graphic pen of Mr. Kincaid. He 
writes : — 

" Bangoon, Aug. 8, 1852. — In my last I mentioned that 
Lord Dalhousie and suite were here. The day after his ar- 



148 INTERVIEW WITH LOBD DALHOtJSIE. 

rival one of his secretaries called on me and spent more than 
an hour, asking a great number of questions relative to the 
government, &c, of Burmah. On Saturday last, before he 
left, a line from one of his aide-de-camps informed me that 
the Governor General would see me and mj associates at 
three o'clock. I went accordingly with Mr. Vinton and Dr. 
Dawson. His Lordship received us in the kindest manner, 
and at once began conversing on Burman affairs in a way 
that indicated great familiarity with the subject. He inquired 
about the three races, Karens, Talaings, and Burmans, the 
peculiarities of each, the number of native Christians, whe- 
ther the government made no distinction between us and 
British subjects, whether I was acquainted with the present 
king, who were the leading spirits in the court of Ava, and 
what were the feelings of the people towards the English. He 
asked my opinion of the late viceroy, whether he came down 
with peaceful or with hostile intentions. To this last I 
replied ' Hostile, no doubt.' 

" * How then,' he inquired, * do you account for the pacific 
tone of the king's letter to me V 

" ' It was to blind Commodore Lambert, and give the vice- 
roy time to prepare for resistance.' 

" '" What are your reasons for thinking the viceroy's inten- 
tions hostile V 

" ' He came down slowly, collecting men and money in all 
the towns along the river, and brought ten large boats loaded 
with powder. On his arrival he took no notice of Commo- 
dore Lambert. The very day that he made his public entry 
into the city he issued one of his most hostile orders, cutting 
off all intercourse between the shipping and the shore 
under penalty of death. When Mr. Edwards went with a 
message, one of the officers in the viceroy's compound drew 
a sword and threatened his life. When a deputation of four 



PEGtT ANNEXED. 149 

officers was sent, they were not allowed to enter the hall of 
audience, and were rudely treated by the officials. The 
viceroy's conduct was throughout consistent with the suppo- 
sition that he came with hostile intentions.' 

" The G-overnor-General inquired about the loss of my 
library, observing that it was a most happy circumstance we 
ourselves had not fallen into the hands of the viceroy. He 
spoke of our dispensary ; said he had sanctioned the draw- 
ing of medicines for its use from the public stores ; and 
added, ' If you will allow me, I will give a small donation 
to the dispensary.' About an hour after our return he sent 
250 rupees. Before taking leave I said : ' We feel, in com- 
mon with many others, that the well-being or otherwise of 
unborn millions depends very much on the decision to which 
your lordship shall come.' He replied with evident emotion : 
■ I feel it. Those who have not the responsibility may act 
hastily. I have come to a decision after long and careful 
examination.' When taking our leave he said, 'We may 
meet again.' Never will the impressions awakened by the 
interview be effaced from my mind." 

On the 20th December following, we have an announce- 
ment of the annexation of Pegu to British India, in the 
following letter from Dr. Dawson : — " At half past ten 
o'clock to-day the solemn act of dismembering the Burman 
Empire took place on board Her Britannic Majesty's ship Fox. 
The proclamation declaring the incorporation of the whole 
of the ancient kingdom of Pegu in the Empire of British 
India, was publicly read in the presence of a large company 
of naval and military officers, and a royal salute of twenty- 
one guns was fired in honor of the event. This year com- 
pletes the century since it was conquered from the Talaings 
by the renowned Alompra, the hunter of the ' Moke-so-bo.' 



150 PROSPECTS OF THE FUTURE. 

It is a day of jubilee in Rangoon. The reign of terror 
ceases. 

" Three millions of people have been emancipated from 
the dominion of the most heartless and oppressive Govern- 
ment that is to be found in Asia. The intelligence of an- 
nexation will awaken regret in none, except the King and 

Court of Ava Thus fields are opening on every side 

for the prosecution of evangelical labor, and how cheering it 
is to see men and means provided, as the providence of God 
bids us extend our borders. Before many years shall have 
passed, the whole kingdom of Burmah will be fully open to 
receive the gospel." 

Another commencement had now been fairly made for the 
permanent occupation of Rangoon as a missionary station. 
Mr. Kincaid wrote, " The population of Rangoon and of all 
the villages in the neighborhood is rapidly increasing. 

The principles of Christianity have taken deep root in the 
hearts of some twelve thousand, and through these a - large 
amount of moral influence is brought to bear on some twenty 
thousand more. Our churches are found scattered all the 
way from the sea-shore to Prome. We have now at school 
in this city two hundred and fifty young persons preparing 
to go back to their villages, some to teach school, and others 
to labor as evangelists among their countrymen. About 
forty native preachers are now supported by the congrega- 
tions over the country. I hope to see churches raised up 
along the whole line of this river to the Hukang Valley. 
Then we shall stand on the borders of Western China and 
on the upper waters of the Great Cambodia, and can reach 
by our books and our preaching untold millions in the centre 
of Eastern Asia. I almost wish that I had been born thirty 
years later in the Christian era, so as to see Christianity 
pouring its light over these vast regions." 



PE0SPECT8 OF THE FUTUPE. 151 

The annexation of Pegu included the district of Bassein, 
and united in one continuous sea-board of British possession 
Arracan, Pegu and Tenasserim, commanding the entire 
outlets and deltas of the Irrawaddy, the Sitang, and the 
Salween. The British territory ran northward up the Irra- 
waddy to Meaday ; and in addition to former stations, Toun- 
goo, Shwaygyeen, Henthada, and Prome were "occupied as 
mission stations. 



152 THE TENASSERIM PROVINCES. 



CHAPTEK IX. 

MATAH. 

" A little spot, enclosed by grace 
Out of the world's wide wilderness." — Watts. 

It is pleasant after the details of war and suffering in the 
preceding chapter, to turn to the peaceful labors of the mis- 
sionaries in the Tenasserim Provinces. Here they preached 
the word, taught their schools, pursued their translations, and 
took their jungle tours, none daring to make them afraid. 

On the banks of the Tenasserim, surrounded by wooded 
hills, is situated one of the first Karen settlements, Matah 
or the city of Love. Here, for many years, a little band of 
disciples has gathered together for the worship of the eter- 
nal God. They have been distinguished for their sobriety 
and industry ; and the great change which has been effected 
in their social habits, proves that their hearts have been 
brought under the purifying and elevating power of the 
grace of God. One who visited them even in their early 
days said, " I am seated in a Christian village surrounded 
by a people that love as Christians, converse as Christians, 
act like Christians, and in my eyes look like Christians." 

In 1846, one of the missionaries writing from Matah says : 
" The Christians here have just built themselves a spacious 
board chapel. It is, on the whole, the best chapel we have 
seen in the Karen jungles. It was built at the expense of 
the church, and considering the scarcity of paddy during 
the year, it was a great undertaking ; for they have spent 



A SABBATH AT MATAH. 153 

two hundred rupees for sawed timber. They have also fur- 
nished their pastor with food, and contributed forty-one ru- 
pees^to the Tavoy Missionary Society. Here then we see 
what we desire to witness so much in every place ; a church 
building its own place of worship, supporting its own ordain- 
ed minister, and contributing to the spread of Christ's king- 
dom." 

It would be interesting to trace how these people have 
been led on, preserved as a flock in the wilderness, fed and 
instructed by pastors raised up from amongst themselves, 
who have led them in the ways of peace and holiness, making 
their lovely glens and rocky mountains resound with the 
praises of their Eedecmer God. 

In 1852, we have the following interesting account of a 
Sabbath spent in Matah, and of a tour in the jungle from the 
pen of Mrs. E. Mason, the wife of Dr. Mason of Toungoo. 
She had left her husband at Tavoy pursuing his translations 
and missionai^ labors, and had travelled into the jungles 
accompanied by a few of the disciples, in the hope of indu- 
cino; some of the o-irls from the Karen villages to come to 
her school in Tavoy. She writes to her husband : 

" On reaching Matah, I fully proposed going on immedi- 
ately to LongpuDg, to spend the Sabbath among the Shos ; 
but I found the Sho preacher's wife here, and not a single 
boat to be found. All were gone to the fields, and the boats 
had gone with them to bring in the paddy, for it was harvest 
time. Moreover, the teacher's wife was very unwilling to 
let me go on ; so I was for once obliged to yield ta obstacles, 
very, very reluctantly, as I was anxious to hasten on my tour 
as rapidly as possible. But here I am in Matah, and a sweet 
and pleasant spot it is. I visited two Sho families and then 
returned to the chapel, it being very hot ; and from the time 
I came in until just now, I have been constantly talking with 



154 A SABBATH AT MAT AH. 

visitors. They are very glad to see me ; the Shos partic- 
ularly keep close to me, some holding my dress, and some my 
feet, as if they felt I belonged to them, and they were afraid 
of losing me. 

" After I had been here an hour, or perhaps two, who 
should come in but the Sho teacher, Klana, with a great pad- 
dy basket On his back and in his dirty tield-dress. He had 
not, I imagine, heard of my arrival, and came along past the 
chapel. I was sitting in the door conversing with the sis- 
ters when they said, 'There is Klana ' The poor man was tak- 
en by surprise, and looked exceedingly mortified, but he set 
down his basket like a man, and came up smilingly. He is 
very pleasant, and I am sure I shall love both him and Kola- 
pau very much." On Sunday evening she writes, " This has 
been a very happy day to me. I scarcely remember to have 
had more enjoyment than I have had to-day with the dear dis- 
ciples of this jungle town. Last evening as soon as teacher 
Kolapau came back from Tavoy, he came to see that I was 
provided for, tired as he was ; and in the evening they as- 
sembled for prayer. This morning at an early hour he came 
and rang the gong, when all that could came together for 
what I should call, a covenant meeting. After reading the 
Scriptures, and prayer, all related their feelings, and confess- 
ed their sins, and it was a very solemn and affecting season. 

" All had something or other to confess, and Klana confess- 
ed that his heart still clung to the world. After all had 
spoken, I said a few words by way of encouragement, for I 
saw they were inclined to brood over their transgressions, 
which it seems to me is not the way to grow better. So I 
told them it was good to confess our sins one to another as 
the Bible commanded, and no one could say he was without 
sin, neither brother, nor sister, nor teacher, but after repent- 
ing of our sins, we should do as the apostle taught ; ' leave 



A SABBATH AT MAT A II. 155 

the things that were behind, and press forward to the mark 
of the prize of our high calling of God in Christ Jesus.' 

" At the usual hour they came to worship, when teacher 
Kolapau preached to about a hundred attentive listeners ; a 
very good assembly indeed at this season of the year, when 
the greater part are obliged to go very far away to harvest 
their fields. He preached an excellent discourse, standing 
like the teachers, and with a very dignified and impressive 
manner. I was quite amused at one little incident. While 
he was preaching very earnestly, suddenly he paused, and 
looking at a very respectable young man in the corner of the 
chapel said, ' Young man are you going to sleep % Look at 
me, and pay attention, and don't cover up your eyes again.' 
Then turning round he added, ■ Don't one of you go to sleep : 
not a man, woman, or child !' I thought it would be well 
for some congregations at home, if they had pastor Kolapau 
in the desk, for I assure you no one so much as winked after- 
wards. The singing was very sweet, and the congregation 
generally clean and respectable, and every way it had the 
appearance of an enlightened Christian community, which 
speaks well for their teachers. 

" After the close of the forenoon service I had a meeting 
with the females, when about fifty came together. After 
telling them of the good news I had often heard from the 
city of Matah, and how much it rejoiced the Christians in 
America, I read a portion of the 17th of John, and explain- 
ed it to them, enlarging upon the duty of prayer, and the 
necessity of faith and obedience, in order to secure answers 
to our prayers ; and drew their thoughts to the comforting 
assurance, that however poor might be their abodes here, 
they had the promise of a place in the ' Father's house 
above.' 

" They seemed to understand me generally, and what the 



156 A SABBATH AT MATAH. 

Sgaus did not comprehend, Klana's wife interpreted. I 
prayed with them, and felt perfectly free, and unembarrass- 
ed ; which I think was a particular blessing from God, be- 
cause it is so long since I had the Shos about mo, that I had 
greatly feared I should not recall the language, and had been 
making it a subject of prayer for some days. It was a very 
pleasant interview ; and I trust not wholly unprofitable. At 
the close of this meeting I had the children together, about 
twenty, I believe, with whom I prayed and conversed for 
some little time, trying to stir them up to seek the Saviour 
with all their hearts. A few of them were disciples, and 
some were not. 

" In the afternoon the gong again called the assembly to- 
gether, for the study of the Bible ; when teacher Kolapau 
took the Sgaus, and gave me the Shos. They read and them- 
selves explained the 15th of John; which was selected be- 
cause of some remarks made by them before. I feel it will 
not be a lost day to them. They seemed to have their 
thoughts somewhat quickened, and their aspirations after 
Christ increased. 

" One man told me afterwards that he was one of teacher 
Mason's pupils, (as indeed nearly all the Sho men were,) and 
that he had not been happy since he ceased preaching. He 
said he knew but little, but he remembered that you told 
him once in a letter, that if a man waited to learn all the 
word of God, before he preached, he would die before he 
got through, without preaching at all. He said his wife had 
often urged him to come to you to attend to his Master's 
business ; and he felt that he had buried his talent and was 
like the dried up branch. He formerly preached some years, 
but for the last three years he has been making paddy. He 
may perhaps conclude to dig up his talent, and go with me 
to town, and go to work again. 



LONGPUNG. 157 

" In the evening the people came together again for a 
short season, when Kolapau explained the Scriptures, and 
one of the brethren prayed. It has been a most delightful 
day, and I feel my own soul refreshed more than I ever did 
amidst the privileges of our own native land. I am very 
glad now that I was obliged to remain over the Sabbath 
though the fact that the little church at Longpung do not 
return to worship on the Lord's day nor the teacher remain 
to look them up, only proves the necessity of earnest self- 
denying efforts in their behalf. I fancy the people are a 
little crooked, and the teacher disheartened ; but he is go- 
ing with me to visit the unconverted hamlets, so I have re- 
frained from asking any questions, or saying anything about 
his feelings, hoping he will be warmed up by the Holy 
Spirit's influence, so as to commence again with renewed 
strength. 

" The people here, especially the old disciples, (who 
almost all say you baptized them,) ask many questions about 
you, and always mention your name with a smile upon their 
lips, which shows that you still have a place ia their hearts. 
They also mention their other teachers with interest, and I 
fancy from the way they speak, that Brother Thomas is fast 
winning their affections. 

" This morning at an early hour I left Matah and came by 
boat up to Longpung. "We were about six hours coming up, 
and what a mad stream it is ! I think we came over five or 
six rapids where the waters rushed down with great fury. 
The men were obliged to work the skiffs with poles most of 
the way, although the skiffs were extremely small and light, 
only broad enough for one to sit comfortably on a seat. We 
had three skiffs, and there being but two men in one of them, 
they dropped behind and we were obliged to send back for 
them. I saw soma of the richest arbors of creepers above 



158 THE SCENERY. 

the bank of the river that I could ever imagine. Old de- 
cayed heartless trunks some thirty or forty feet high, others 
ten or fifteen, scattered here and there, often a dozen within 
a few rods of each other, were completely shrouded with 
creepers in richest green, and sometimes, the old trunk 
being very large, it was a lovely sight. Others were lofty 
trees with huge branches ; every inch of them covered with 
parasites hanging in garlands from every branchlet, and 
stretching from bough to bough in the most graceful manner 
possible. The scenery was simply one dense jungle of a 
great variety of trees, among which were interspersed the 
bamboo and wild plantain ; and until the sun broke through 
the thick fog, the forest on either side was studded with the 
large delicate blossoms of a plant which, as they vanished 
with the morning dew, seemed like fairies gazing and laugh- 
ing at each other. 

" I found at Longpung a pretty new chapel, very small, 
but large enough for the place, and quite comfortable, ex- 
cept that there was no side to the front, and the roof being 
very low it was exceedingly hot during the day. The Chris- 
tians appeared very happy to see me. I spent about three 
hours conversing with them on the interests of our Redeem- 
er's kingdom, and found them very firm, faithful, working 
Christians. What I imagined yesterday I was glad to find 
not true. Brother Thomas could not desire more devoted 
disciples than this little band seem to be. There are but- 
four or five houses, and the church members twelve or more. 
The teacher Klana I am much delighted with, I do not 
think he had been in the paddy field, as I supposed when 
I wrote on Saturday ; he probably went down to Matah, be- 
cause his people were watching their fields, which they say 
they must do, and they keep the Sabbath there. Do you re- 
member a young lad whom you baptized with a throng of 



ITS CONVERTS. 159 

Karens beside a stretch of sand between Longpung and 
Chongquait before Matah was founded ? There was one whose 
name was Klana, and he is now the pastor, the honored and 
beloved pastor of this little vine in Longpung. He used to 
follow you in your perilous excursions up and down these 
rapids to the head of the Tennasserim, and now he is my 
guide over a portion of the same way. He is accompanied 
by his little son, a very clever boy, who bids fair to take the 
place of his father some twenty years hence. 

" After a season of prayer with the Christians of Long- 
pung, I came up to Chongquait. The stream grew more 
and more dangerous, and the men were frequently obliged 
to wade up to their loins and drag the skiff over the stones 
and rocks. I saw beside the stream a cave which gives the 
name to the Christian village, but I did not stay to enter it. 
I am now in a bono- edifice in the midst of the village, a COni- 
fortable new temple which the people have built in obedi- 
ence to the priest, who lives here and still rules over this 
village. Indeed he drew all the inhabitants away from 
Longpung up to this place fearing they might forsake him. 
There-are however, two disciples here, and others who listen 
with interest. 

I went into one house this evening and was immediately 
followed by a company of woman and girls and one young 
man, who listened very attentively to the truths of the gos- 
pel. I talked to them about half an hour, and so did Klana, 
and on our return we stopped to converse with some young 
men who had taken their stations by the way. TTe were 
followed to the temple by two or three men, and during even- 
ing worship several women and children came to hear the 
singing. Two or three are thinking a little of going down 
to school. 



160 CHONGQUAIT. 

" Nov. 10th, 1852. 

" This morning a young man came to see me, in whom I 
feel much interest. He is perhaps twenty-five years old, 
the son of the Bong-ko # of this hamlet, a very intelligent 
youth, and as wild as clever. He, however, conversed on 
religion for some time with unusual interest and some degree 
of solemnity. 

"1 left him, and went out to visit the women who would 
not come to see me. Visited four or five houses and found 
willing listeners in them all. In one was the sister of one 
of theLongpung Christians, and an aged mother. She said 
her brother had often told her of Christ and the way of sal- 
vation, but she did not yet believe ; she had lived thus long 
without the Saviour, and she thought she should die as she 
she had lived. Still she listened with attention, and treated 
me like an old friend. In the first house there were two 
women, and the mother I thought at first was very far from 
becoming a believer. She was lame, and sat beside her 
cooking box attending to the breakfast. I sat down on the 
mat and talked to her until her heart softened, and she told 
me she was a widow, and had never known happiness since 
her husband died. I told her that I too had been a widow, 
and could therefore sympathize with her in her sorrow. 
This seemed to win her confidence, and she then conversed 
freely. I should not be surprised to hear of her becoming a 
Christian ere many years pass *by. The father of another 
family is the son also of the Bong-ko, and yet he seems to be 
just ready to become a Christian. His son has already 
learned to read a little, and has been to school one rains at 
Longpung. He followed me to-day to the next hamlet. I 
have visited six houses, and have spoken to twenty immortal 
beings at different places until they all understood that they 

* A wizard prie t 



VISITS. 161 

were sinners, and what they must do to be saved. One 
woman said she believed, but could not refrain from getting 
angry, and that kept her from being a disciple. The Bong- 
ko's wife was also an interesting auditor, and one of hitf 
daughters. 

" The "Bong-ko himself I was very sorry not to see, but he 
had gone to town. He still tells the people that he can see 
into futurity, and they assemble at eve of full moon to wor- 
ship at the Bong. On one side is an altar over the elevated 
part of the building, with seven bamboo candlesticks ; and 
when they worship they light up seven tapers along the 
front, and place upon the altar rice, plantains, &c, and bow 
down to Arumadaya, who the Bong-ko teaches them to wor- 
ship. 

" I left Chongqnait about nine this morning, and started 
again upon my journey, travelling over two very high moun- 
tains and up a path so steep, it was scarcely possible* to be 
carried. Much of the way was almost perpendicular, and 
where it was not, it was through the bed of the river. On 
the side of the first mountain, we found a little hamlet of 
three houses, where we stopped and endeavored to tell them 
of the Saviour. One man was from Siam and listened with 
a good deal of interest. After Klana had spoken to him, he 
got up and brought a torch and laid it down beside him, say- 
ing, ' There, take this, you are going into a dark jungle 
where you cannot see' — showing that he wished to manifest 
a kind feeling. He was a very poor man, and lived in a 
dwelling scarcely large enough for two to turn in. I have 
no doubt that that torch was an acceptable offering to God ; 
and I shall expect if ever I reach heaven to see that man 
there. His wife seemed to take no interest in the subject, 
but another of the villagers followed us to this place, and 
gave good attention to all that was said. Here we had the 



162 

privilege of speaking to eight or ten persons, notwithstand- 
ing it was in the heat of the day. 

" We next came to a single house cooped up in a deep 
glen, where I stopped to breakfast, and speak to the woman 
who sat there weaving. There was also a young man there 
who listened with attention, and followed us on to this place, 
which is also on the Chongquait river in a glen of the moun- 
tains below the Matah range. There are ten houses here ; I 
have visited five or six, and spoken to the people. Found 
one woman sick and her infant also, and was able to admin- 
ister some medicines which gave relief. In the evening we 
had an assembly of twelve or fourteen persons to evening 
worship. After I had spoken to them, Pastor Klana began 
and preached such a sermon as I have seldom heard, and in- 
deed I think I never saw one equal him in preaching to the 
natives. He has such a peculiar tact, such an adaptation to 
circumstances as could not be excelled. He kept their at- 
tention riveted for a whole hour. Occasionally one or two 
of the assembly would burst out into a laugh, and indeed it 
was sometimes more than I could do to preserve my gravity, 
his illustrations were so peculiar, so interesting and pointed ; 
but usually all were solemn and thoughtful. I fancy Klana 
is another Kothabyu in preaching , but he wants the teacher 
with him to keep up his courage. He is now out preaching 
ao-ain with great earnestness to a family near, although I 
should think he must be exhausted from this evening's ser- 
vices. 

" We have taken possession of a large forsaken building 
where Klana's uncle once lived who was the High Priest of 
the glen and officiated at all the sacrifices, particularly at the 
Thako Mosha worship. When this official dies amongst the 
Karens, his dwelling is forsaken ; and so we find this one, 
just as he left it, with his utensils, mats, &c, all left to 



THE JOURNEY CONTINUED. 163 

decay, an offering probably to the Thako Mosha. It is not, 
however, particularly comfortable, as there is not a single 
place where I can screen myself from the cold damp night 
air, it being simply a floor and a roof, with a slight balustrade 
round a part of it. 

" Palatot, Nov. 11th, 1852. Having visited another house 
this morning, I left Chongquait about eight o'clock, and 
after crossing Palatot river, ascended a very high mountain 
and through another glen to this place, south west of Matah. 

" Our path for the greater part of the way was through 
pong (reedy grass) often much higher than the coolies' heads, 
and usually five or six feet high, so that I was but a dwarf 
in the path ; it so covered the way, and it was so sharp and 
tangled, that my feet were cut and scratched, and my dress 
literally drenched with dew. 

" At this hamlet I find seven houses, and have just been 
speaking for a little while with the women who came to see 
me, only four in number, the rest being in the fields helping 
to gather in the harvest. One of the women is a very in- 
teresting person, and all listened with fixed attention. Who 
can tell but some of them may be saved by what little they 
have heard to-day of Christ : and if only one, of how much 
more worth than the cost and trouble of this little tour ! I 
cannot but feel that our Heavenly Father had some design 
for the good of this place ; or I should not have felt so 
impelled to come at this season, though I would not for a 
moment imagine that anything I could do or say, would be 
blessed ; did I not know that God often chooses the weak 
things of this world to advance His kingdom, and cause His 
glory to appear before the heathen. 

" From Palatot we came to Palatoter, about two or three 
hours' travel. We stopped in a field to converse with a 
heathen mother, who was gathering chillies and black pepper, 



164: VISIT TO PALATOT. 

and soon after with another who sat in a booth by the way. 
Both were very attentive, and one seemed not far from the 
Saviour. We came on from this garden through the bed of 
Palatot river to Palatoter, where we found four houses, all 
of which I visited and had the privilege of speaking to six- 
teen souls, eight men and eight women, besides children. 
One man was from Siam, and never heard the gospel till he 
came to these regions. He is a very interesting man, and 
has a beautiful daughter, whom I tried hard to persuade to 
come down with me to school, but she does not yet feel the 
value of learning to read. This man wears large horn cylin- 
ders in his ears, about four inches in length, four in cir- 
cumference, and made hollow. All the women in this region 
wear polished ebony knobs in their ears, often more than 
four inches in circumference, and formed like spouts, except 
that they present concave fronts which are used for mirrors, 
very different from those of Dongyan. Their jackets also 
are very different, and not half so elegant, being wrought 
only a little, and that with cotton, but the houses present a 
much more comfortable appearance than is usual, having 
roofed verandahs. 

" The Siamese Karen says there are a great many Shos in 
Siam, and that they all worship Gyike, which I suppose is 
the Talaing for Gaudama. I find many in these parts who 
worship Gyike. Those who observe this mode of worship 
do not adhere to the Thako Mosha custom, nor feed the 
Nahts (evil spirits.) One man here reads Burmese, and has 
often heard the gospel ; he does not oppose, but seems only 
to want the new heart. He seemed much pleased to see us, 
and immediately invited us up into his house. Another lis- 
tened for an hour, I imagine, asked many questions, and 
really seemed like a brother, though he does not yet confess 
Christ. Probably his wife hinders him, as she seems to be 



VISITS TO THE HEATHEX. 165 

more opposed than any one I have met, although her parents 
have both united with the Christians of Longpung. She sat 
down, however, and heard what I had to say with attention. 
" From Palatoter to this village the road is much worse 
than any I have yet traversed. We reached this place about 
five o'clock p. m., having walked as fast as the way would al- 
low without halting the whole way up to the Paletot river, 
which, though but a brook, is often quite deep. I was car- 
ried by two men through the deeper portions, and walked 
the remainder. When I reached this place the first wo- 
man I met invited me into her house, offered me bee- 
tlenut, and brought water and washed the blood from my 
feet with her own hands. Of course, I refused so much 
kindness, but she would not desist until I was made com- 
fortable, and laid down in the best place in her dwelling. 
This woman and her husband are the followers of the Bong- 
ko, but she listened with polite attention to the truths of 
our religion, and appeared very friendly. When I sat down 
to dine she brought out a bunch of plantains, and seemed 
very anxious to assist me, though she does not confess any 
belief in the Saviour. She had a sick child to whom I ad- 
ministered medicine, which probably accounted in part for 
her kindness. 

" At this -hamlet there are but three houses, and we found 
but seven or eight persons. I have had conversations with 
all the women and children, and more or less with the -men, 
on the interests of eternity. One family is related to one 
of the disciples at Longpung, and the man seems ready to 
believe ; but does not repent of his sins so deeply as I wish 
to see him. His wife says she believes in Jesus Christ, but 
does not yet worship Him. She seems to think she will, at 
some time, become his disciple. Two of -this woman's child- 
ren have learnt to read at Longpung. 



166 DISCUSSIONS WITH THEM. 

" This evening we have had worship with the family where 
we stop, and some of the neighbors who came in, and since 
worship, the head of the family has entered into an energetic 
discussion to prove that Arumadaya is the Christian's Grod, 
and the Airys our angels. He is a son of the Bong ko, and 
a very well informed man for a Karen. But pastor Klana 
was fully competent to meet all his arguments and diffi- 
culties. The discussion has been very interesting, and led 
to a declaration of all the fundamental principles of the 
Christian religion, and a complete refutation of the Bong ko 
creed. 

" I was greatly rejoiced to hear this young man speak so 
well for his Master, indeed he was a very superior preacher. 
I have heard none superior to him, and I doubt much if any 
foreign teacher will ever master the language so as to preach 
with the ease, fluency, and cogency of argument that this 
man exhibits. He is also very amiable in his deportment, 
and engages every one's affections. He never speaks as if 
he were a superior, but with true oriental politeness he says 
to the young by way of apology for his earnestness, ' I be- 
lieve I have lived more years than you, it is therefore proper 
I should tell you what I know.' To his equals he will say : 
' I know very little, but what the teachers have told me I 
ought to tell you, so that we may all be saved ;' and to his 
elders he says with Elihu, ' I am young, and ye are very old, 
yet suffer me a little, for I have yet to speak on God's be- 
half.' This courteous way of commencing his discourses en- 
gages all hearts, and as he always appeals to his audience, 
they of course assent, and then they must listen. I look 
upon this man as a real jewel to the mission; indeed both 
these pastors Klana and Kolapau are gentlemen, gentlemen 
in feeling and manners, and apparently devoted to the ser- 



RETURN TO LONGPUNG. 167 

vice of God , and it does one real good to hold communion 
with such hearts. 

" The man to "whom Klana has been preaching says, 
' Formerly we were all under the power of the Nahts, but 
now we cast them off without fear.' As they had taken one 
step he thought they would continue to advance, until they 
would all worship the true God ; but he thought it must be 
done step by step, as some argue for the inebriate ; they 
must first worship the Bong or Gyike, and so ascend up to 
the God of all. 

" Longpung, Nov. 12th, 1852. 

" "We left Kangta early this morning; crossed over Pala- 
tot river, and a pretty high hill, and soon entered Dauchong 
brook, and followed it up to its source, where we entered 
Beong stream, which we traced down to its mouth. The first 
stream was very narrow, but most of the way one or two feet 
deep, and often much deeper, flowing through a deep gorge, 
the mountains on either side being very lofty and covered 
with thick jungle. This stream was very muddy, and the 
rank grass and water-plants grew up close to the middle, so 
that there was no path whatever ; and we were obliged to 
struggle up through the middle of the stream, sometimes 
over fishing dams and logs, for about three hours. After 
leaving this stream we had to climb the side of a hill, over 
immense fallen trees, and then make our way through a thick 
bamboo jungle, and then through a forest as difficult-of access 
as any mangrove swamp. We had to cut our way, I imagine, 
for about an hour in our wet clothes, and when we reached 
the chapel, our feet and limbs were still covered with leeches, 
swollen, torn and bleeding. 

" From Chongquait round to Longpung by this route must 
be about twenty miles, and at this season the paths are so 
Dad, when there are any, that I have not been able to use 



168 THENCE TO MATAH. 

the cot twenty steps the whole day. This is the great ob- 
stacle to early travelling in the jungle, for I do not think 
there is any danger of sickness ; but the paths and whole 
face of the country are as different in November, and in 
December and January, as the roads of a city and those of a 
rough upland village. This should be especially borne in 
mind by all tourists ; or those who pass through the jungle 
later in the season may suppose that early travellers exag- 
gerated the difficulties of the way. In December these 
streams, which are now swollen and rapid, will be dried up, 
or very low, and the whole country which is now covered 
with reeds and tall grasses will then be burnt over. 

" At Longpung I visited three heathen women in as many 
different houses, had a season of worship with the disciples, 
and then came on to Matah, where I immediately went to 
see an aged infirm disciple, who is unable to leave his room. 
He was, I believe, one of the number baptized at Lockyien, 
and told me all about Mamma Mason's^ living in the jungle 
a great many days in a booth, while they were building Matah, 
and how he afterwards carried leaves to help to build her a 
house. He related a great many other interesting things of 
days gone by. He is a firm believer, and evidently enjoys 
the presence of his Saviour. He has no fear of death, and 
seemed to feel deeply the goodness of God towards his 
countrymen, in delivering them from the Burmese and Si- 
amese who so often devoured them. 

" On returning to the chapel, the dear Christians thronged 
me, inquiring if any had believed. ' Did you see my daugh- 
ter V inquired an aged mother who was herself formerly a 
priestess of the Thako Mosha. ' Yes, I saw her.' ' Did she 
say she would be a disciple V And when I was obliged to 
answer in the negative, she bowed down her hoary head and 

* Dr. Mason's first wife, Mrs. Helen Mason. 



RETURN HOME. 169 

wept! if ever my heart sympathized with parents it was that 
evening, to see the anxiety depicted on every face, as they 
inquired after unconverted children and relatives. 

" Early this morning I left Matah and have walked, I 
fancy, a good deal more than ha'f the way ; as there were so 
few coolies, I could not otherwise hasten at all. On the way 
I noticed a large rock on the side of the mountain, piled up 
with small stones, and on asking how these stones came there, 
they told me of a custom that prevails among all the Bur- 
mese. Every one who passes picks up a stone and throws 
it en the cairn ; if they fail to do it, they believe sickness 
and other ills will befall them. It seems to be a species of 
worship to the spirit of the mountain, and they say the cus- 
tom is very ancient. I stopped to see if my coolies observed 
the tradition, and lo, each one as he passed, stooped down, 
and picked up a stone, and threw it on. 

" During this tour I have had the privilege of seeing and 
conversing with about seventy Sho women, nearly as many 
men, and a good many children. It was not my object to 
speak to the men ; but when they came to me, and sought in- 
struction, I felt it would be sinful to withhold it because I 
was a woman. that the Holy Spirit would deign to bless 
this small effort to the salvation of some precious souls ; for 
this I scarcely dare to hope ; yet with Grod all things are 
possible, and he can use even such unworthy services for 
his glory." 

In this tour Mrs. Mason travelled with some of the disci- 
ples, or the Christian paster Klana. She went a distance of 
nearly one hundred miles over upon the mountains toward 
Siam. She was gone twelve days from her home, visited in 
all seven hamlets, saw and conversed with about two hundred 
individuals, and walked two-thirds of the distance out and 
back again. Dr. Mason was at the time engaged in the trans- 



170 RESULT OF MRS. MASON'S JOURNEY. 

lation of the Scriptures into the Sgau, and could not have 
accompanied her without stopping that important work ; she 
therefore went forth alone, as many other females of this 
mission have been wont to do, carrying the story of the cross 
to these children of the forest, visiting them in their moun- 
tain homes, and pleading with them to turn from their dumb 
idols to serve the living God. Surely such labors will be 
owned by Him who will testify at last that, " they have done 
what they could." 



ME. ING-ALLS IN AEEACAN. 171 



CHAPTEE X. 

LOYELL INGALLS. 

Meek souls there are who little dream, 
Their daily strife an angel's theme. — Keble. 

It was early in 1850 that Mr. Ingalls visited America, 
but though, absent from the chosen scene of his labors, he 
was not unmindful of the service to which he had conse- 
crated his life, and his heart yearned to return to the hea- 
then. Writing to a friend he says : " This delightsome land 
can have no charm for me while so many of our race sit in 
darkness, and Christ's last command remains unfulfilled. I 
still feel that Burniah is my home, and I shall when recruit- 
ed return to my post with more pleasure than I left it." 
While he was at home he married one who was in everyway 
worthy of him, and who proved to be a helper indeed in all 
his future labors for the salvation of the Burmans. At the 
close of 1851 v they proceeded to Arracan, and Mr. Ingalls 
recommenced his labors at Akyab. During his absence the 
church had become reduced in numbers and greatly afflicted 
by dissensions : but on his return the clouds were dissipated, 
and circumstances of an encouraging nature re-appeared. 
Preaching was constantly maintained in two different parts of 
the town, and numerous visitors listened attentively to the 
word. Mr. Ingalls filled the place of the pastor to the church, 
and gave himself to daily preaching in the zayat, and conversa- 
tion with inquirers, both there, and at his own house, which 



172 PROSPERITY AT AKYAB. 

was always open to visitors. His labors were much blessed, 
and could scarcely have been more judiciously directed. 

In February 1852, Akyab was visited with cholera, which 
carried off not only Mrs. Moore, the wife of one of the mis- 
sionaries, but Mr. Campbell of Kyouk-Phyoo. In the midst 
of these afflictions, they had the comfort of seeing that the 
word of God grew and increased. In October, Mr. Ingalls 
writes : " Several have been baptized lately. It is very 
interesting to witness these conversions from Buddhism : 
these proud Buddhists going joyfully forth from the camp 
of this world bearing its reproach. One young man said, ' I 
was so happy, I spent the whole night in prayer to my God.' 
I find I have baptized fifty-eight within a few years in this 
place, but many of them have joined the church above." 

Southern Burmah, however, was Mr. Ingalls' earliest field 
of labor, and thither he ardently desired to return ; and now 
that the way was open, in accordance with his own request, 
he was authorized to remove to one of the stations. At 
Rangoon, therefore, Mr. Ingalls took up his abode, the last 
and most successful scene of his labors. He says, in writing 
at this time : " I believe the Lord has work for us to do here 
More than seventy Burmans have been baptized during the 
last eight months, a larger number than were ever baptized 
in so short a period. With these converts we have spent 
much time, and have had reason to rejoice over them." Five 
places for daily preaching were established in the city, 
where numbers congregated every day and listened to the 
word of God. A spirit of inquiry prevailed, more general, 
more earnest, and leading to more decisive results than at 
any previous period of the Burman mission. 

The following interesting case occurred not long after Mr. 
and Mrs. Ingalls' removal to Rangoon. The narrative was 
received from Mrs. Ingalls herself. 



MISSIONARY LIFE IN RANGOON. 173 

The Sabbath was over, the sun had dawned upon another 
week, and the labors of the missionaries had again commen- 
ced. Their dwelling was a very humble one ; for they had 
but recently arrived in Eangoon, and houses of any kind or 
description were difficult to obtain. It was in the memora- 
ble year 1853, not long after the British arms had broken 
the Burman power in Pegu, and as soon as the British flag 
waved over Rangoon, the American missionaries, under its 
protection, commenced preaching the glories of the cross. 
Mr. and Mrs. Ingalls had taken possession of a small native 
house, with no flooring but the cold earth. It had two doors, 
one of which opened upon a broad verandah, facing the busy 
street. In this verandah, day by day, the missionary and 
his assistant took their seat, and with a few of their Bibles 
and tracts spread out before them, endeavored to attract the 
little groups of Burmans, who, from time to time passed to 
and fro. Sometimes a goodly number would stop, and enter 
into a lively discussion with the white teacher, and then again 
a solitary individual would alone remain to engage his deep- 
est sympathy, or excite his ardent hopes. Thus day after 
day passed on. 

The Sabbath was over ; a new day had dawned ; and the 
teachers were sitting in the verandah, when their attention 
was arrested by a thick-set, sturdy looking Burman entering 
the verandah, followed by four others. He was hot, dusty, 
and wearied, and had evidently travelled some distance : but 
throwing down the bundle at his back, he commenced at 
once in a loud decided tone. ' "Well ! I've come back ! I 
want to be a Christian, I want to be baptized ; and I've 
brought four more with me; He spoke with such earnest- 
ness and rapidity, that it was only when the man paused, 
that Mr. Ingalls could say, ' Where did. you hear of our re- 
ligion 1 who are you ?' He started as he replied, ' "Why, 



174 THE STRANGE BLACKSMITH. 

doesn't the teacher know me ? Don't you remember, I'm 
the blacksmith to whom you gave the Testament and the 
tracts two months ago ? I've been reading them ever since. 
I took them to my village, and have been reading on ; and 
now I know all about it, and I know Christ can save a poor 
sinner like me, and I want to be baptized.' 

All this time he had been unrolling his bundle, and had 
taken out the precious Testament which had made him wise 
unto salvation. Mr. Ingalls made him sit down beside him, 
that he might inquire into the amount of his knowledge. Of 
his sincerity there could be no doubt, for, like the poor blind 
man in the gospel, he could say, ' Once I was blind, now I 
see.' He was greatly distressed when he found that it was 
Monday; for he had travelled without resting, in the hope 
of reaching the teacher on the Lord's day, the Christian's 
Sabbath. He then said, that when he returned to his own 
village, he had read and studied the book ; that at first he 
was awed by the thought of the majesty and purity of the 
great God, and that he feared he would not look upon such 
a one as he was ; but he read on — on — such wondrous things, 
and of the Lord Jesus calling and saving even poor .fishermen 
(who are held in great contempt by the Burmans) ; and that 
gave him hope, and he thought he ' might even save a poor 
blacksmith !' His eye glistened as he added, ' how I have 
read, read, blowing my bellows with one hand, while I have 
held my Testament with the other. I want to be baptized.' 

How did the hearts of the missionaries rejoice, not only 
over this saved soul, but over those whom he had brought 
with him ! He had truly gone forth bearing precious seed, 
and had come again rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him. 

After a few days of instruction and counsel and prayer 
the poor blacksmith was baptized, and returned to his family 
and his native village ; but there the fiery trial of persecution 



PROGRESS IN RANGOON. 175 

awaited him, and the headman of the village, after treating 
him with much severity, drove him from his home. He fled 
towards Ava, no doubt with the desire of carrying the gos- 
pel there, but his work was done, and having witnessed a 
good confession upon earth, he was called to enter into the 
presence of his Master in heaven. 

This was the commencement of the work again in Kan- 
goon, amongst the Burmans, and the following extracts will 
show how rapidly it advanced, Mr. Ingalls writes in March 
1853 : " We find much to do, churches to be planted, and 
pastors instructed and ordained. No church goiDg bell gives 
the welcome to the sanctuary in this city ; no crowds throng 
the streets, wending their way to the house of God ! Rice 
has been scarce, and the merchants are filling their houses 
with it, while crowds of women and children are flocking to 
the sales. How great the contrast to the solemn silence and 
order that prevails in Christian lands ! A little company of 
Burman Christians are congregated together ; and save this 
little band, none know or love the Eternal God. 

Shortly after we have recorded the baptism of a priest and 
nun. " It was pleasant to see this man throw off his yellow 
robes, and with a Christ-like simplicity obey the commands 
of Jesus ; and then dress himself in the garments which are 
worn by the Burmans. The nun, too, seemed greatly rejoic- 
ed as she cast her eyes upon the water which was to give her 
the outward name of Christ's chosen. 

" The great Pagoda was near us in all its golden glory, but 
its glory is nothing compared with the glorious scene of these 
happy converts ! Thirty have lately put on Christ by baptism. 
" One, an old man just on the borders of the grave, has great- 
ly rejoiced our souls. Another has come a distance of some 
hundred miles, and tells us he has worshipped God seven 
years. He heard the gospel from a man who heard it from 



176 THE STOEY OF MOUNG SHWAY PAU. 

Mr. Kincaid : so the seed springs up ! Another man came 
into the verandah, and after sitting a while listening with 
deep attention, he got up, and coming very near me, said, 
1 Were you not here seventeen years ago ?' I said, ' Yes.' 
* Then,' he replied, ' you are the man who gave me that pre- 
cious book, and taught me how to pray to a God in the heav- 
ens. I have tried to do so since, and now I must learn the 
whole of this blessed way.' He remained fifteen days, and 
was baptized, after which he left for his distant home. The 
book I had given him so long ago was a Testament." 

Another narrative received from Mrs. Ingalls pointedly 
illustrates some of the Burman habits and customs. 

" It was noon day. The sun was pouring down its scorch- 
ing rays, making it one of the hot days of Burmah. The poor 
Burman dog had dug his bed under the shadow of a shrub, 
or beneath the ladder-steps. The house cat had left her wont- 
ed sunny bed, and sought a resting-place close by the water 
jar ; and most of the natives had sought a shelter from the 
rays of the scorching sun. Even the parrot bird drooped its 
green wings, and clung to the very bottom of his cage for a 
shadow. At this hour a Burman man of about thirty-five 
years of age, might have been seen slowly plodding his way 
to the city. For a turban, he wore some four yards of 
the finest book muslin. His Polka jacket was of jaconet ; 
and a piece of fine blue plaided silk was round his body and 
limbs, and was fastened in front by a loose knot, allowing 
the ends to hang down in a graceful fold. His feet were 
incased in green sandals, and he carried over his head a leaf 
umbrella. His outer appearance was that of a respectable 
Burman. He walked slowly along, seemingly unconscious 
of the excessive heat, though he was evidently suffering from 
it, He scarcely raised his eyes from beneath his knitted 



MXHJNG SHAVAY PAU. 177 

brow, and only paused a moment at the door of a hovel to re- 
light his cigar, ere he entered the town. 

"He passed on, but suddenly his footsteps were arrested 
by the hand of a familiar friend beckoning him to enter the 
zayat, (an open shed, erected for the shelter of travellers, 
and where the priests go to give religious instruction,) in 
which he was sitting. He hesitated a moment, and turning 
round gazed at the poor bamboo hovels which he had just 
passed, and then turning again, he ran his eye along the 
group of zayats and monasteries, and then lifting his eye to 
their graduated roofs, with their curious carvings, and glitter- 
ing spires, gazed on the golden Pagoda in the centre, and the 
tall flag staffs, interspersed here and there, from which float 
the long gauze streamers, which point the people to the holy 
place. The ground round most of these places was the high- 
est, and about them grew the lofty palm, the cocoa-nut and 
various fruit and flowering trees, which, from their variety 
of shade and form, gave the place a most beautiful appear- 
ance. The Burman seemed lost in thought as he compared 
the wretched bamboo hovels, and the splendor of the scene 
before him ; and the call of his friend was unheeded. 

" ' Why do you not come and visit us ? Are you becom- 
ing Jesus Christ's man ?' The last words struck upon his 
ear, and he turned his feet to the zayat, assuring his friend 
he was not Jesus Christ's man. The yellow-robed priests 
relighted their cigars, which had wasted from their long slum- 
bers, adjusted their pillows, and with their strings of black 
beads, which answer the purpose of rosaries, placed them- 
selves in the attitude of listeners. 

" The old Burman pushed the cup of water to the traveller, 
Moung Shway Pau, and then began his inquiries : ' Where 
have you been ? Do you think the white foreigners will drive 
us from our home ? And why have you not attended our 



178 MOUNG SHWAY PAU. 

feasts, and made offerings to the gods of late ?' ' The bells 
are falling from the Pagoda,' answered Moung Shway Pau, 
dissembling as he spoke : ' and it needs regilding. The peo- 
ple are getting slack : I fear they are becoming heretics ; for 
I hear the American teachers are daily receiving the calls of 
many of our people, and I often see them with those little 
books. One of the heretics passed here a few days since 
with a large bundle of tracts, and pressed me to take one ; 
but I quickly told him I would not soil my hands with one of 
them. He attempted to leave one, but I told him I would 
make kites for the children of it. So he left, saying his God 
could open my heart without books.' 

" Seven or eight of the priests had jealously watched the 
countenance of Moung Shway Pau, and conjectured that he 
knew more of those books than he admitted ; so they drew 
near, and in their sacred language, Pali, expatiated long on 
the beauties of their religion. They pressed him to seek for 
merit, and told him if he would only replace one of those 
soiled book muslin streamers which floated from the flag staff, 
he would get great merit. As many times as it floated on the 
breeze, so many times he would be king of the earth. He 
could not conceal his contempt for this folly, and told them, 
yes, it was only the natural course of things : if he hung his 
head-dress on the staff; it would float if there was any breeze. 
Then adjusting his silken garment, and carefully concealing 
a small book which he had in the fold, he left ; and a half 
hour's walk brought him to his abode. 

" His sister unrolled a mat for him, and his nephew, a boy 
of six years old, with a good share of the milk of human 
kindness beaming from his eye, stumbled over the mat, spill- 
ing the cup of water which he was wishing to give his uncle. 
A smile lit up the face of Moung Shway Pau, as he picked 
up the little boy ; but his brow instantly became knitted, and 



MOU!*G SHWAT PATJ. 179 

throwing himself upon his mat he pressed his aching head 
and sighed deeply. His sister Mah Doke brought in her 
vegetables, and began dressing them for the evening meal. 
As she glanced at her brother, she saw from the quick heav- 
ing of his bosom that he was troubled, and throwing down 
her knife, she was soon at his side, asking him if he was ill. 
He replied, no and yes, in the same breath : and then said 
he did not believe their god could save them from hell. 
Their religion was all, give, give; and he saw they would 
only receive poverty in return for all their gifts, and after 
death go down to hell. ' I wish to worship the God who can 
save me from hell.' ' What,' exclaimed the sister, her eye 
flashing with shame and anger, ' Will you leave the religion 
of your forefathers, for that of the foreigners ? You will 
bring shame and disgrace upon your sister !' And she re- 
turned to her cooking. 

" Moung Shway Pau now drew from the folds of his dress 
=a small book, which he carefully opened, and began perusing 
with eagerness. It was the gospel of Luke the 9th chapter, 
26th v. ' Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my 
words, of him shall the Son of Man be ashamed, when he 
shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, and of the 
holy angels.' — The tears rushed to his eyes, and he smote 
his breast vehemently saying, ' I denied thee, was ashamed 
of thee at the kyoung, and I must go down to hell. I believe, 
God, thou art the only true God ! yet I denied thee 
there.' 

" The shades of evening drew nigh, Moung Shway Pau's 
brother returned, and when the evening meal was finished, 
his sister told her husband that her brother had become a 
heretic. His brother-in-law, who was a learned man, lit his 
cigar, and with all the arguments at his command endeavored 
to prove that the system of idolatry was a good one. Moung 



180 MOUNG SHVVAY PAU. 

Shway Pau opened his book and read of the God who made 
the heaven and the earth and everything therein. ' This 
God can save us from hell,' continued Moung Shway Pau, 
but Gaudama our god, cannot. Gaudama does not exist, and 
even if he did he could not save us from hell, for in his own 
book he tells us, ' If you have sinned, you must endure it.' 
" The brother-in-law admitted the truth of the statement, 
but said it was a shame to forsake the religion of their fore- 
fathers. ' Ah,' said Moung Shway Pau, ' your eyes are not 
opened to your great danger, the children of murderers 
and robbers ought surely not to follow in the footsteps of 
their parents ? It would be a virtue in them to forsake those 
sins, and follow after the good and wise.' The noise of these 
discussions soon brought in the neighbors and friends ; and 
Moung Shway Pau to his surprise found himself surrounded 
by some fifty persons. For a moment his whole frame shook 
with agitation, but in two or three more, he gathered cour- 
age, and with the light and instruction he had received he 
pictured forth the wisdom of the God who created the world, 
and filled it with its millions of beauties and delights. He 
told them that this God had bestowed all these blessings 
upon man : ' Yes,' said he, ' even upon us Burmans and 
Talaings, who have never once raised our hands in the atti- 
tude of praise and adoration, to the Giver of them all.' He 
tried also to tell them of Jesus Christ, God's only Son, but 
his views were not yet distinctly clear about the wonders of 
the cross and its agonies ; yet enough was told to strike the 
hearts of one or two of the listeners, and they resolved to 
visit the foreign teachers and learn from them the wondrous 
story. 

" Moung Shway Pau sought his mat, but it was not to 
sleep : his mind was too busy with the past and present. 
He recalled the days of boyhood, and those of riper years 



MOUNG S II WAY PAU. 181 

Where was the wife of his youth ? and the children she had 
borne him ? His little ones were sleeping in the quiet 
grave ; and she had been driven from his home ; for he had 
brought another to share the place in his affections she had 
so k>ng held alone. His sin rose up before him as a thick 
cloud, and he groaned and wept in the bitterness of his soul, 
crying ' God be merciful to me a sinner !' He spent the 
night in deep repentance before God, and only closed his 
eyes just as the sun began to shed its first feeble rays of 
light. He was. however, soon aroused from his slumbers by 
the shouts of the people, and the tramp of multitudes. It 
was the waning of the moon, the day of worship for the fol- 
lowers of Gaudama. Business had been suspended, and 
young and old were busy in paying homage at the temples 
of Gaudama, and presenting flowers. The people were 
dressed in their best attire, loaded with yellow cotton cloth 
and silk, and every now and then were borne upon the shoul- 
ders of men, small trees, with hundreds of branches from 
which hung handkerchiefs, pillows, mats, umbrellas, cups, 
flowers, fruits, and candles, offerings for the priests : the 
whole producing a bright and gorgeous scene. These days 
had been the delight of Moung Shway Pau, and he had been 
wont to exult with pride over all this display, when he com- 
pared it with the humble worship of the foreigners and the 
heretics, but now his heart sickened at the sight. He had 
firmly resolved to become a Christian, and as the sun arose 
he hastened to the foreign teachers to receive instruction, 
and to tell them of his wish to worship the Eternal God. 
The teacher's heart beat with joy as he heard the glad news. 
The native preachers were called together, they all sought 
the mercy seat. God was with them, and Moung Shway Pau 
became a rejoicing convert. As his heart overflowed with 
love instinctively the image of his injured wife rose before 



182 KO-THAH-A. 

him, and he longed to tell her of the joys of salvation through 
a crucified Saviour. The following Sabbath he was baptized, 
and the Monday following went in search of his neglected 
wife. He found her, told her of his conversion, confessed 
his sin, and humbly besought her to return to his home. • At 
last she yielded, and before the church they were again 
united. She is now seeking the favor of God, and soon it is 
hoped she will be numbered among his children." 

Many interesting circumstances occurred about this period 
in the mission at Rangoon. A great field was opening before 
it, and the land seemed waiting to be taken possession of by 
the " King of kings." A convention of the missionaries 
had been held at Maulmain to meet a deputation from 
America, to consider the best mode of pursuing their opera- 
tions for the future, and the stations they were to occupy in 
Burmah Proper. Soon after the return of Mr. Kincaid and 
Mr. Yintonfrom the convention, we find mention of the ordi- 
nation of Mau Ya to the pastorate of the Karen church at 
Ya-the by the aged and revered Ko-Thah-a, the venerable 
pastor of the Rangoon Burmese church. 

Ko-Thah-a had been three times imprisoned for the name 
of Christ, and through good report and evil report had for 
many years testified to the grace of God in that city. He 
is now in his eighty-fourth year ; " a shock fully ripe." 
Though unable to preach to his people, his life shone with 
increasing lustre, and in his prayers there was such a re- 
markable unction, that they awakened feelings of the deepest 
emotion in almost every heart. His language was always 
pointed, and beautiful for its conciseness and brevity. He 
would often remark with thankfulness that he had been 
spared to see that time when the gospel could be preached 
with none to oppose, and like Simeon of old he was now 
ready to depart in peace, for his eyes had seen the Lord's 



MAU YA. 183 

salvation. We can scarcely imagine a more striking picture 
than this venerable man presiding at the ordination of Mau 
Ya, his fine eye beaming with intelligence and holy joy. 

Mau Ya had been baptized about twenty years before, and 
had been an assistant preaching the gospel for nearly fifteen 
years. The church* in their letter asking for his ordination, 
bore testimony to the uniformity of his Christian character, 
and ministerial faithfulness. He had endured suffering and 
reproach for the name of Christ ; had been fined, whipped, 
imprisoned under sentence of death, and condemned to the 
worst of all kinds of slavery. He had been made a pagoda 
slave, and required to spend his life in the service of a god 
whom he knew to be no god. His business had been to keep 
the pagoda in repair. He was rescued from this dreadful 
state by the kind assistance of Col. Burney, who had been 
long and intimately acquainted with the Governor, and said 
to him that he should regard it as one of the greatest per- 
sonal favors he could do him, if he would give Mau Ya his 
liberty. The Governor yielded, and he had already been 
the instrument in the hands of God of the conversion from 
heathenism of some scores, if not hundreds, of his country- 
men. He was now an ordained preacher of the gospel of 
Christ, from whose labors the missionaries anticipated much 
for the final and permanent establishment of the Kingdom 
of Christ in that dark land. 

Thus the work went on, and the people released from the 
bondage in which they had been held, rejoiced in the milder 
rule under which they lived. "Now we can breathe and dare 
to sleep ; but before the English took possession, we could 
neither breathe nor sleep." One old man, after speaking of 
the oppressions under the Burmans and their deliverance by 
the English, exclaimed with much warmth, " how I wish I 
could see the Queen of England, how I would ivorship her /" 



184 



When told that her Majesty would not be pleased with such 
worship he appeared unable at first to understand it, but af- 
ter repeated explanation, he for the first time seemed to re- 
ceive the idea of the existence of an Eternal God to whom 
worship should be paid alone. In December, 1855, Mrs. In- 
galls writes : — " Agreeably to the promise I made you last 
mail, I will try and tell you of our last tour. We left Ran- 
goon, Tuesday the 13th, and at sunset reached the village of 
Sike gu. We went ashore, and the first street led us to the 
idol-temple, or worship-place. ' There,' said the aged man, 
pointing to a small marble idol under a canopy of yellow and 
red paper, ' there is our god.' We asked him if that image 
could save them when they presented their offerings, or ask- 
ed to be saved from hell, or perhaps to become gods ? He 
seemed startled at the question, and said he never thought of 
it before ; but his fathers had worshipped these gods, and he 
must not forsake their customs. Mr. Ingalls told him of the 
God who made the heaven and earth, and all therein, and the 
way of salvation through Jesus Christ. He gave the most re- 
spectful attention, and followed us on to a crowd of people, 
who gathered themselves around us, while we told the men, 
women^ and children, of Him who alone can save them from 
hell. At dark we went to our boat, and left a preacher on 
shore to explain more fully the way of salvation. As Mr. In- 
galls was not well, I went ashore, and found a house spread 
with mats, and a basket for my seat. The man of the house 
had read some of our books, and his eyes seemed to be open- 
ed to the truth. The preacher I left on shore, and at midnight 
I still heard his voice at the house. Left early in the morn- 
ing, and reached a village called The-lu. The shore was so 
muddy that the men went above their knees in getting 
ashore ; so we did not venture into the village. The preacher 
gave a few books and talked with the people ; and in the 



185 

evening we left for the mouth of the river. We came to a 
large stream on our left ; and, as the tide turned we entered 
it, and called at a large town named Th'co'pein — meaning, the 
place where the robbers used to assemble and repair, &c. 
We found the people all engaged in boat-racing, and, as 
the tide was against us we were obliged to remain. The 
preacher climbed up the bank, and found only two grown per- 
sons in the place, the rest being at the river, attending the 
racing. The racing was near us, and divided into two parties 
who separated, one on the right and the other on the left 
bank ; as the men rowed, each party cheered them on by music 
and dancing, and the waving of flags by the young women- 
Forty rupees were the stimulus; and when one of the 
boats gained the reward, that party sent up loud cheers, and 
the boat returned, the rowers singing and dancing until they 
arrived ; after which the company separated. As the win. 
ners passed by our boat, we found that they were many of 
them Karens. Soon other boats came ; and when they found 
who we were, they strongly urged that we should visit their 
place. We had felt somewhat sad about our reaching this 
place at this very time ; but we had committed our ways to 
God, knowing that He would guide us in the way we should 
go ; and when this warm invitation came, we concluded to go 
to the Karen village, and return to Th'co'pein in the morn- 
ing, when we hoped the people would resume their usual oc- 
cupations, and be ready to receive us. 

" We therefore left ; and, at sun-down, entered the stream 
leading to the Karen village. At first it was broad, but, 
after a few rods, it became very narrow, and, as it was get- 
ting dark, we found we were obliged to go on, or remain 
where we were ; for return we could not, the stream was so 
narrow. After a long and toilsome time of cutting down 
trees and large bushes that obstructed our way and nearly 



186 

ruined our boat, we arrived at the first village, called Co 
Doung. The mosquitos came in by thousands, and Mr. In- 
galls not being well, we had a most dreadful night. Day- 
light came, and we found we must go out of the stream, or 
remain another day for the tide ; which we could not do and 
carry out our plans ; besides, it was a dreadful place for one 
in feeble health. Our time being short, we went ashore, and 
found that most of the people here were Burman ; the Karens 
living a long distance beyond. Some aged men came, and 
said they wished to hear about the God who we said had 
made the world. Mr. Ingalls told them of man's fall, and 
the story of redemption through Jesus Christ. Smiles and 
tears were mingled together as they listened. They asked 
how they must pray to God, and when Mr. Ingalls told them 
they listened as though their life depended upon those 
words. ' But,' said one of the old men, with sorrow, ' I fear 
we cannot remember those words.' We told them that the 
book we had given them would teach them ; and they clasped 
it, even as some precious treasure. They said they should 
come to see us, and we expect to see them, for we believe 
their hearts have been touched. Some Karen girls came to 
see me ; but when they saw Mr. Ingalls they ran under the 
house ; fearing, they said, he had come to steal them. Mr. 
Ingalls told them that I was his wife ; one of the girls then 
looked in my face, and said ' yes ; she has a white face : he 
will not want us.' After a few words of explanation they 
came about us, and listened well. They understood Bur- 
mese very well, and told me there was one Christian in their 
part of the village. We had a pleasant time at this place, 
and left, followed to our boat by very many, and, better than 
all, by the grateful blessings of the aged men. We felt 
deeply interested in them ; for they were so sincere in all 
their questions, and seemed to feel that their God could not 



MR. ix galls' last jouexey. 187 

save them. We had a hard time in getting to them ; but we 
left, thanking God that we had been permitted to tell these 
aged men of the way of salvation. 

" At noon we returned to Th'co'pein, and found the peo- 
ple of that place, and hundreds from other villages, engaged 
in making offerings to the priests, and consecrating a dress 
for them. Two boats were fastened together, and over them 
a canopy of paper, cut and painted in fantastic forms, and 
the sides hung and looped with yellow satin, made from the 
sacred cloth. Some half dozen priests seated themselves 
under this canopy, and read from their Pali books : while 
the people sat in their boats around them; after which a man 
went to the priests and presented the sacred dress, and a few 
others followed with fruit and flowers, and the scene closed 
We felt cast down when we came to this place and found the 
people all engaged in their forms ; but before we left we 
thanked God for sending us at this very time ; for while they 
were consecrating the sacred dress, our boat was completely 
surrounded by large boats, filled with respectable men from 
other villages, who listened to us with deep interest, and 
many of them confessed they had no confidence in their 
religion. We gave some choice books, and told them what 
they must do to be saved. When we left we felt that we 
were short-sighted creatures, and that God knew how to order 
all things well. Hundreds had come to that place to worship 
things of man's invention ; but God had looked with compas- 
sion upon them in the midst of their sins and opened a door 
of mercy for them. God is truly a Being of mercy and long, 
suffering. We received a warm invitation to visit the homes 
of some, which we hope to do at some future day. 

" At sundown left this place, and came to another village, 
and before morning left for Rangoon. This has been a kind 
of exploring tour, and, as we cannot revisit them ourselves, 



188 

we shall try and s$nd preachers to these places. We have 
presented the cup of salvation to many hundreds, and it has 
universally been received with gladness. But they must 
have ' line upon line,' to enable them to understand all God's 
will. After getting our mail, and attending to home af- 
fairs, replenishing our stores a little, we left in the evening, 
for a trip up the Irrawadi and Bassein River. 

" At midnight reached the village of Tet-thit ; at eight in 
the morning, after a chat with the people, left ; and at noon 
reached the village of Co-tu-yoh, a large nourishing town, 
where the river forks, and large towns are built upon the 
banks, numbering some five five thousand people. We went 
ashore, and found the head-man was an old friend of ours, 
who had often attended our Sabbath service, and had given 
fifteen rupees towards the Burman chapel. He received us 
most cordially, and we concluded to spend the Sabbath at his 
place. He told us we might have our service in his audi- 
ence hall, and in the evening, as we went through the town, 
we heard the streets resounding with the call of the runner, 
warning them to come and hear of the God who made the 
world. On Sunday they rang the native bell, and we went 
to the house of the ruler, where we found two chairs for us, 
and mats spread for the people in his hall. The people soon 
came, and hundreds heard, for the first time, of Him, who 
alone is able to save them from hell. Many of them were 
the builders of the temple, and the strong men of the priest. 
They, too, listened with the most rapt attention : they came, 
no doubt, with an eye of curiosity, but they soon became 
deeply interested, and the truth seemed to sink deep into 
their hearts. Not only was the large hall filled, but the 
house was surrounded with men, women, and children, who 
were so eager to hear, that the ruler gave them permission 
to tear off the front of the house. As Mr. In galls stopped a 



ME. INGALLS' DEATH. 189 

moment in his remarks, we could not but call to mind God's 
mercy to Burmah. How changed the scene !" 

It was early in 1856, that, in the midst of these interest- 
ing labors, the health of Mr. Ingalls, which had been long 
' failing, rapidly declined. As the work increased, the hour 
of his release drew near. A short trip to Bengal was tried 
in the vain hope that a cessation from labor and a change of 
air and scene might recruit his failing strength. Mrs. In- 
galls was left at Rangoon to do what she could for the Bur- 
man converts, as there was no other missionary in the Bur- 
man department then at Rangoon ; but he so rapidly declined 
at Calcutta, that she was hastily summoned by the return 
steamer. Knowing his great anxiety to get back to the 
scene of his labors that he might die there, they embarked 
to return thither. He still hoped he had work to do for 
Burmah, and used to say ; " I cannot leave until some one is 
willing to come and care for these souls as I have done. I 
left America to die on heathen ground ; and I have never 
repented the course I have taken." 

Just as the vessel was nearing Rangoon, on the 14th March, 
1856, it was evident that he was sinking. Miss Vinton, who 
was with them, had sung to him, 

" The morning light is breaking, 
The darkness disappears." 

The light of heaven had indeed broken upon his soul ; the 
darkness and storms of this world had disappeared ; and he 
entered into rest in the forty-eighth year of his age. After 
Mr. Ingalls' death, we received the following from his . 
widow : — 

" Rangoon, Nov. 8th, 1856. 

'Your very kind letter of August last came safe, and I 
have to thank you for your kindness. , I was then deciding 



190 MRS. IN6ALLS REMAINS. 

about my return to America ; and I thought I should call 
upon you as I passed through Calcutta, and therefore did not 
reply. It seemed my duty to go home with my little girl, 
and I had some fears regarding the work of a single lady in 
Burmah. I packed my trunk, and was ready to go by the re- 
turn steamer; but the woes of the heathen and the tears of 
the Christians, have come before me with so much power, 
that I dare not go yet. My fatherless child is left with but 
few relatives, and none of this world's goods ; and I felt it 
my duty to seek for her a home, and see that she was decent- 
ly educated, so that she might care for herself if God called 
me away ; but I feel the claims of these people so strong upon 
me, that I must remain a little longer, and trust God in re- 
gard to the future. I have therefore decided to remain 
another year. It has been a bitter struggle of duty ; but if 
I can see my Heavenly Father is guiding, then I shall not 
fear to remain. I shall leave my present home in the city, 
and go to a part of the town called Kemendine. It is a new 
Burman field, and we may have some obstacles to obstruct 
us ; but if God is with us, we shall not work in vain. I shall 
have two or three Burman preachers, with their wives, some 
Burman schools, and shall go out into the jungle in the dry 
season. I thank you for the interest you have manifested 
towards me, and also your dear husband ; and now I ask, as a 
favor, that you will pray for a blessing to rest upon my work 
here. I have led a happy life in this country. We have 
had our clouds ; but I think we have had more of the sun- 
shine. 

" My dear husband loved the people, and they loved him , 
so that we have always been surrounded by dear Christians 
and heathen who were listening to the words of our blessed 
gospel. My dear husband always wished me to spend my 
time among the people ; so I have always been with him in 



MR. IXGALLs' CHARACTER. 191 

his work, and heretofore have had but little time for sorrow. 
At times now I feel that my cup of sorrow is too bitter for 
me ; but at other times God does not forsake me, and I see 
His love in all that He has done. My dear one was ripe for 
heaven, and God knew when to take him. Every day some- 
thing comes up to remind me of my loss, and the struggle is 
a hard one. Companies of Burmans come in. They inquire 
for the teacher. It is a bitter task to try and tell them that 
he is gone, gone. ; and it is not an easy thing for me to com- 
pose myself to tell them of his peaceful end, and remind 
them of his exhortations to them, and his prayers on their 
behalf. These are bitter trials ; but God has blessed some 
of these meetings, and I know he will not leave me. My 
confidence in my Heavenly Father was never so firm as now. 
And then, too, the Christians are most kind to me, and even 
the heathen seem to wish to do something to cheer me. A 
large company came to see me a few days ago, having heard 
that I was going to America. One said, if I would stay he 
would do any thing for me. One said he would give me 
the posts for a house ; another the boards for the floor ; 
another the material for enclosing ; and one poor man, who 
had nothing to give, held up his hands and said 'Here, mamma, 
is my gift : they are strong, and can help make the house, if 
you will only stay ;' another that he would bring a boat and 
convey me to his place. So you will understand I do not 
feel alone with these poor Christians and heathen. My health, 
too, is good, and that of my little girl was never better ; so 
I have blessings with all my trials." 

And thus this mission has proceeded, " in deaths oft." 
Probably in no modern mission, save that of the Church Mis- 
sionary Society in West Africa, has there been so large a 
number of deaths in proportion to the brethren employed. 



192 LOSSES IN THE MISSION. 

The following is a list to the present time of those who count- 
ed not their lives dear unto them, but have finished their 
course with joy and the ministry which they received of the 
Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. (Acts 
xx. 24.) 



LOSSES LN" THE MISSION. 



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JOURNEY TO TOUNGOO. 195 



CHAPTEE XI. 

TOUNGOO. 

" How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of them that bring 
glad tidings." — Isaiah lii. 7. 

Within a year after Pegu was annexed to the British 
Empire in India, Mr. Mason, who had been laboring since 
1831 in the Tenasserim Provinces, became so enfeebled in 
health, that he was compelled to contemplate a return to 
America. On reaching Maulmain, however, he determined, 
before doing so, to visit Totjngoo, the ancient capital of that 
kingdom. In the days of the Burmese Government, no 
Christian or Christian missionary had ever entered that ter- 
ritory, and the sound of the gospel had never reached the 
people's ears. It was justly thought that the present moment 
would be favorable to the introduction of Christianity, es- 
pecially amongst the Karens, who associated with the rule 
of the White Foreigners a time of prosperity and peace and 
of enlightenment in the knowledge of the Eternal God. 

While Dr. Mason's own mind was being pressed to go 
forth into this new field, Sau Quala, one of the best and 
wisest of the Karen pastors of Tavoy, was being led to con- 
sider its importance too, and he had determined to go up the 
next dry season to travel through the length and breadth of 
the land, saying, in the spirit of Caleb : " Let us go up at 
once, and possess it ; for we are well able to overcome it." 

Dr. and Mrs. Mason started on the 28th September, 1853, 



196 JOTJKNEY TO TOUNGOO. 

upon their journey northward, and stepping into a large 
canoe, with a Karen Bible and nymn book, turned its head 
towards Toungoo. From Martaban, to Ava and the Hima- 
laya, a range of granite mountains runs nearly north and 
south, between the waters of the Salween on the east, 
and of the Sitang and Irrawadi on the west. For fifteen 
miles, they had to stem the torrent of the Salween, which at 
this season pours down an immense volume of water. At 
noon they rested for refreshment under the shade cf a large 
spreading acacia tree, of which upwards of ten species are 
known in Burmah, some with globular heads of flowers, 
some white and some yellow ; some are immense creepers, 
while others are noble timber trees, rivalled by none except 
the teak. Twenty miles' progress up the Benling river 
brought them before Zaingyeik or " Foot of God" mountain, 
two or three thousand feet high. At the base of this moun- 
tain is the site of the most ancient city in Burmah, Thatmug. 
Mr. Whitaker, who visited the site of this old city, says : 
" There remain only the walls and pagodas ; two of which 
are the largest I have ever seen." 

The footsteps of recent and ruthless war could be traced 
here and there, in the desolated villages, as the travellers 
passed along ; but occasionally their sadness was relieved 
by an application for a Christian book from some Burmans 
who, perhaps years before, had received a tract, and who 
were anxious to know more of the Eternal God, and the way 
of salvation. On the third day they passed the site of the 
old city of Benling, marked by a single palmyra palm, rais- 
ing its majestic head amid surrounding desolation. 

They rested on the Sabbath, in a gothic-looking temple on 
the banks of the stream, under the shade of a banyan, and 
there, with their Karen and Burmese Bibles and hymn book 
they sought to attract the passers-by, and to induce them to 



JOURNEY TO TOUNGOO. 197 

listen to the words of heavenly wisdom. Many a little group, 
during the day, drew near, and for the first time heard of 
Christ, the Saviour of sinners. 

At dawn they were on their way again, and after pulling 
between high banks for a few miles, entered a large lake ex- 
tending further than the eye could reach, The western 
boundary of the lake is only four or five miles from the banks 
of the Sitang, into which it opens by a narrow outlet. Here, 
at three miles' distance, the bore is heard roaring like the 
waves on the ocean shore. At the mouth of the river the 
tidal wave sometimes drives up a perpendicular wall of wa- 
ter twenty-seven feet high, engulfing everything before it. 
Two or three hundred British troops lost their lives there, 
and it is not unusual to hear of boats swamped, and all but 
life lost. The city of Sitang is but an inconsiderable village, 
though the residence of a king six or seven centuries ago. 
The valley was everywhere disturbed by robbers, who, al- 
though the people were disarmed, found no difficulty in pro- 
curing arms and ammunition themselves, and kept all with- 
in their reach in a state of terror and alarm. Dr. and Mrs. 
Mason, however, proceeded in safety, and at last reached 
Shwaygyeen, which is so beautifully situated, that it affords 
one of the most picturesque views that can be found, even in 
the east. It lies on the forks of the Toungoo and Shway- 
gyeen rivers, with the mountains close behind, and is one of 
the most convenient stations for a Karen missionary of all 
towns in Burmah. The Karen settlements commence at 
half an hour's distance from the city, and continue, at short 
intervals, in untold numbers, north, south, and east. At 
this station Mr. and Mrs. Harris, from the time of the annex- 
ation, carried on their earnest self-denying labors. They and 
their four children had gone up to the place in a country 
boat rowed by Karen disciples. It was on a Saturday night 



198 8HWATGYKEN. 

they anchored, and the next morning, finding an empty shed, 
they assembled to worship God, and there, for the tirst time, 
the glorious gospel was proclaimed at Shwaygyeen. At 
that time no Christian hearts beat there ; but now, scatter- 
ed up and down the hills, are hundreds of baptized believ- 
ers. Mrs. Harris was a woman of no ordinary powers, and 
seems to have had a good knowledge of the language. She 
had schools for the children, and taught the men and wo- 
men to read with great success. She was at last struck with 
fever and dysentery. On asking the doctor what he thought 
of her case, he said, " I would not say there is no hope." 
" No hope !" she replied, " you know I am not afraid to die." 
In speaking afterwards to her, her husband told her that na- 
ture must fail, if the disease was not checked. She then 
said, " "Well, I have tried to show these Karens how a Chris- 
tian should live, and now I hope to show them how a Chris- 
tian can die. I had hoped to take my dear children home to 
America some day, but now you must do it, and I shall go 
to my dear mother ; (her mother had died a triumphant 
death not long before.) I shall need no outfit, and the voy- 
age will be short." She did all she could to comfort her 
husband to the last ; and had the Karens constantly with her, 
exhorting them to follow Christ, that they might reign with 
him. 

To relieve her husband she had everything prepared, even 
to her coffin. To her dear children she said, " Don't think 
of your mother as there" pointing to the earth ; " but think of 
her as before the throne of God and of the Lamb !" Having 
chosen her grave clothes and dressed herself in them, her 
spirit fled. Mr. Harris had to bury her himself, with the aid of 
the Christians. A little spot was chosen close to the grave of 
those brave British soldiers who had fallen in the service of 
their country ; and as they laid her there the thought arose, 



DEATH OF MRS. HARRIS. 199 

how far brighter was the crown of glory which she won in the 
service of the King of kings, than the crown of victory won 
by those brave men, in the service of their earthly king. 
Almost her last words to her husband were, " Remember, do 
all jou can for Shwaygyeen." So strong in death was her 
desire that Christ should be known, and loved, and served by 
the people for whom she had lived and died. 

But to return. After nineteen days of travelling Dr. and 
Mrs. Mason came in sight of the walls of Toungoo, looming up 
from a forest of palm trees. The city is a rectangle, a 
mile from north to south, and a mile and a half from east to 
west. It stands on a plain, a quarter of a mile west of the 
Sitang river, which is there about four hundred yards wide, 
and deep enough for the navigation of large boats at all sea- 
sons. The walls of the city were built twenty-five feet high, 
with towers and battlements which have been destroyed ; 
the walls themselves are still in good preservation, and the 
earth has been heaped up on the inside, so as to form a beau- 
tiful promenade all round the city. Here the chain of moun- 
tains on the east, which approached within a few miles of the 
river, is seen in all its glorious sublimity, pile upon pile un- 
til they rise to a height of eight or ten thousand feet. The 
distant western horizon is bounded by the Prome mountains, 
and by the valley of the Irrawaddy. 

The position of Toungoo as a missionary centre, appears 
to be one of considerable importance. Burmans, Shans, 
Kyens, and Toungoos gather within its walls ; and around are 
various tribes of Karens, two or three of which were before 
unknown. This station appears to be likely to rise in import- 
ance ; and the hope is cherished that from it many will go 
forth to be lights in the surrounding darkness, and perhaps 
to be the heralds of salvation even into China and Siam. 

The province of Toungoo was formerly ruled by an inde- 



200 IMPORTANCE OF TOUNGOO. 

pendent king ; but about 1612 it became a dependency of 
Ava, and gave the title of Prince of Toungoo to a member of 
the royal family, until it was annexed to our empire in 1852. 
The missionaries having settled themselves within the city, 
many gathered round to see and hear. Dr. Mason's health 
was enfeebled and exhausted, but this made him only more 
anxious to work while it was day. Mrs. Mason gathered to- 
gether a little school, and at the end of a week sent out a Ka- 
ren tract, " The Sayings of the Elders," which Dr. Mason 
had prepared some years before. It embodied the biblical 
traditions of the Karens ; and on the front page was written, 
" The Eternal God's commands come back to the Karens. 
Learn to read them." This little messenger was given to 
one who was-told to show it to all who would listen upon the 
mountains ; and no doubt the prayer of faith ascended, that 
God would make it successful. Some three weeks after, a 
chief with about forty followers presented himself in front 
of the verandah. Being seated, he began carefully to unroll 
some plaintain leaves, which he had in his hand, and which 
evidently contained something that he esteemed most pre- 
cious. Leaf after leaf was laid aside, until at last the little 
tract appeared, which he reverently presented to Mrs. Ma- 
son, begging her to explain its contents. How gladly was he 
instructed, not only in that, but the Karen Bible ! With won- 
der and astonishment he listened to the word of God in his 
own mother-tongue ; and taking the book in his hand, he 
bowed three times before it, and saying, " Surely it is a spir- 
it, for it speaks Karen." This chief and his attendants were 
present en the arrival of a letter from the churches of Ta- 
voy ; and their delight was inexpressible when they learned 
that they had brethren far away, who could read the Spirit- 
book, and write letters. Hearing that a Karen teacher was 
coming to visit them, they all exclaimed, " Send him to us ! 



THE MISSION COMMENCED. 201 

send hira to us ! we'll feed him, we'll clothe him, we'll build 
a house for him, we'll take care of him ;" but the old chief 
pressed before the others and begged that his name might be 
put down first. He is now not only a believer himself, but 
has several flourishing Christian churches among his people: 
nor have the tribe ever once offered to demons since the 
little messenger was sent among them. 

It was not long after this interview, that a party of 
strange-looking Karens looked in through the door of the 
missionary's dwelling. They were altogether unlike any 
that had been seen before. Their leader was a tall finely- 
formed man, with an expressive countenance, and dressed 
in the picturesque costume of the Taubeah tribe. A curious 
basket was thrown over his shoulder, and a long bamboo 
spear served him both as a weapon and a staff. He was at- 
tended by eight or ten men evidently inferior to himself, 
who, with restless eye, seemed ever on the alert for the 
coming foe. They were from the lofty mountain to the east 
of Toungoo, and had come to see the Christian teachers, and 
to hear their words. The Chief was immediately asked 
whom he worshipped ? 

" Thako Mosha," he replied. This mythical being receives 
divine homage from every tribe of the Karens, but under 
different names, and it is probably Indra, whose worship is 
so popular amongst the Hindus. Whatever it be, the rites 
connected with it have a most tenacious hold of these na- 
tions, and present the greatest obstacles to their conversion. 
It seems an easy thing to induce Karens to say they will 
worship the living God, because they believe their ances- 
tors worshipped him ; but say to them, " You must not prac- 
tise the Thako Mosha's rites," and they instantly dissent, 
especially the elders, who declare that if their children fail 
to observe them, the most terrible judgments will follow, and 

9# 



202 THE TABEAU CHIEF. 

no persuasion can prevent them ; nothing but the enlighten- 
ing Spirit of God. 

There is a place in the Toungoo mountains which is cele- 
brated throughout this region and Tenasserim as the resi- 
dence of this Thako Mosha. It is the Olympus of the Ka- 
rens, and shoots up in two lofty points some seven thousand 
feet from the plain. Between these is a sacred pool, of 
whose magical virtues the country is full of legends, and 
here the Karens go up once a year to worship and make of- 
ferings to this great Thako Mosha, or great spirit, which 
dwells upon the summit watching over the actions of men. 
The Taubeah chief came from this mountain, and worshipped 
this being. He was asked if his people did so too ; and if 
he believed it was this spirit that made the world ? " No ; 
L'Ouah Do," was his immediate reply. Ouah is the appel- 
lation given by all the Karens to the Eternal God, but with 
different adjectives attached. 

A Sgau Karen would say G'cha Ouah, Lord God : a Pwo 
Karen might say this, but would be just as likely to say 
Moung Ouah, the Honorable God, particularly if not ac- 
quainted with the Christians. A Mona Karen would say, 
Ouah Pado, the Great God ; and a Taubeah would say L'Ouah 
Do, also the Great God. To one acquainted with letters 
these local differences would present no difficulty ; but to 
say to a Taubeah, ' G'cha Guah has commanded this or that, 
and he is unaffected by what you say ; but change it to 
4 L'Ouah Do,' and the smile of interest shows that thought is 
awakened. 

The Taubeah chieftain proved to be a minstrel, and recit- 
ed three or four lines of genuine Karen poetry concerning 
the deity, of which the following is a literal translation : — 

" God made the earth, God made the sky, 
All creatures that walk, and all that fly, 
God made the trees, He made the sea, 
God made man, and all things that be." 



HIS VERSES. 203 

Music ever has a charm ; but nothing could have been 
more pleasant to the missionary's ear than the chief's wild 
chanting of his eloquent psalm of the great Creator. The 
more they knew of this man, the more the interest in him 
was increased, especially when he said that his young wife 
and child had been torn from him by the Burmans, and sold 
into slavery. 

One day he asked the missionaries if they had come to 
remain. On being told that they would not go further at 
present, and having satisfied himself that no Burman was 
near, he began improvising, alluding to the Burman 
chiefs who were stockading near Toungoo. His measure 
was irregular and hurried, but the purport was as follows :— 

" Teachers ! -'tis now a sorry day ; 
These wicked chiefs all in array, 
Up in the north with great display, 
For boldest strife and bloody fray, 
The English power defy. 

u Say they, ' The conqueror yet shall bend, 
For all our loss shall make amend, 
Our border we will stout defend, 
And ever down our troops will send, 
Their strength again we'll try.' 

" So, teacher, rest ; in Toungoo stay, 
Nor from the town stray far away, 
For scarcely yet dare we to pray, 
Or e'en to sing a heart-felt lay, 
Our foes are ever nigh. 

M Oh ! we Karens couM tell a tale 
Would make the pale man grow more pale ; 
How sisters' shriek and brothers' wail, 
Are mingled on the sighing gale 

"With the mother's piercing cry !" 



204 VISIT FKOM A TOUNGOO LADY. 

Here the chief paused, and leant his head upon his staff, 
as if his heart was too full of painful memories. He had, 
however, touched in the breasts of those who listened, a 
chord which responded with deepest sympathy, and they 
were henceforth friends. Many Taubeahs visited the mis- 
sionaries during the time of their brief sojourn in Toungoo, 
and in none did they feel a more prayerful earnest interest 
than in the unfortunate minstrel. But the missionaries' la- 
bors were not exclusively confined to the Karens. 

The following account of an interview which Mrs. Mason 
had with one of the former Governor's wives shortly after 
the arrival at Toungoo, will not be uninteresting. We give 
it in her own words : — " Fancy a Tonngoo lady, some sixty 
years of age, her silvery white hair smoothly combed up 
from an ample forehead, her lustrous eyes keenly glancing 
from beneath highly arched eyebrows, her fingers adorned 
with the nine magical stones of Burmah, her feet slipped 
loosely into scarlet sandals, her person attired in a pink and 
white silk robe, woven in small checks, open after the Bur- 
man fashion, with a crimson cincture concealing the bust. 
Over this a delicate lawn jacket open in front, and above 
all, gracefully flowing over the left shoulder, a richly -wrought 
white lace scarf. Imagine such a figure, and you have before 
you a Woonkadau of Toungoo, or a Governor's lady as she ap- 
peared when she paid me a visit with her suite, soon after 
our arrival. Having ordered mats to be spread, I took a low 
seat beside her, and inquired : ' Does the Woonkadau wish to 
hear of Jesus Christ V She replied, ' I have come to hear.' 
Turning to an attendant I said ' How old is the Woonkadau V 
'I have lived sixty-five years/ was her own reply. ' Indeed ! 
the great mother is as old as my grandmother. I am but a 
child, in years beside her ; nevertheless God has shown me 
the true way to happiness ' 



CONVERSATION WITH HER. 205 

" ' Let us hear ! let us hear !' said the attendants : so I en- 
deavored to tell them slowly and solemnly of man's sinful 
state — of their individual sins — of Christ's atonement — of 
the comfort here, and everlasting bliss attendant upon receiv- 
ing it, and the danger of rejecting it, pointing out to them 
distinctly the great difference between salvation by Christ, 
and the annihilation promised in their sacred books. The 
Woonkadau was a very understanding woman, and so were 
four or five others in her train, one of whom could read very 
well. 

" ' I am afraid you will not like my words,' I remarked, 
' you will not like to hear that it is sinful to offer adoration 
to the idols, and Poongyees ; but I must tell you, because 
God says so.' She smiled and replied : 

" ' You are a woman, the same as myself, only you have 
more knowledge ; and what you say are not your own words, 
but God's words, we must receive them as God's words.' 
They all assented to the truth, but I fear only from true east- 
ern politeness, as they did not seem at all affected ; and as it 
was towards noon, she asked permission to retire, as it was 
her hour for sleep. After this interview, I used often to 
send her books and messages, and on sending her the ' Life 
of Christ' in Burmese, she was greatly pleased, and return- 
ed many salaams, saying she had long wished to see such a 
book, and would give attention to the paragraphs I had mark- 
eu °^r her. 

" In + he Woonkadau's train was a pretty young Burmese, 
very graceful and lovely in her manners. She looked in- 
telligent but said little : one of her companions observed : 
'You say, God made us all, and loves us all ; if this be true, 
why has He made* you white and me brown? No, no,' she 
continued with a bitter smile, ' He does not love the Bur- 
mans ; He's the God of the English, not the God of the Bur- 



206 HER ATTENDANTS. 

mans.' ' You plant a garden,' I replied, ' you put in tube- 
roses, balsams, oleanders : you are very fond of your flowers, 
for you planted them yourself, so you carefully tend them, 
water them, dig about them, get rich soil for them, and watch 
with an admiring interest to see the blossoms open.' 

" ' Yes, yes.' 

" ' By and bye a companion comes in, and begins to carry 
off all the red and yellow flowers, " Stop stop !" you cry, 
" you are spoiling my garden." " No, no," she says, " you 
only want the white ones, I'll have all the others." ' 

" ' She should not have them.' 

"'Just -so. The world is God's garden, and the people 
His flowers : white and yellow.' But Mahnaht (the devil) 
comes in with his legion, and pulls them here — there — arm- 
ful after armful, saying, ' I'll have all the red, and all the 
yellow, to keep my fires burning.' But God says, ' No ! You 
shall not destroy my flowers.' They were pleased with the 
simile, as orientals always are with anything like a parable." 

" Nearly all the Menkadaus, or gentlemen's wives in and 
around the city," Mrs. Mason wrote at that period, "have 
visited us at different times, and one is a person of uncom- 
mon talents. She can read fluently, and the people say she 
knows more of Burman books than any man in the place, ex- 
cept two or three priests. This is a very rare case, for we 
have seen only a few women in Toungoo who could read at 
all. I feel much interest in this person, and much time has 
been spent in instructing her, perhaps more so, because she 
is, for a heathen, a really loveable woman, soft and winning 
in her manners and has a particularly sweet pleasant voice. 
She visits us frequently, reads our books, and says she is 
considering the Christian system ; but does not yet believe. 
Her husband is from Ava, a tall noble man ; but not friendly 
to our religion. This woman has a pretty daughter whom 



THE TRINITY A DIFFICULTY. 207 

she has taught to read, and whom she wishes to place with 
me for instruction, and I cannot but hope they will some day 
become true disciples. 

" One day she was stumbling on the doctrine of the Trini- 
ty. She was advised to let it alone until she had learned 
more of the character of Christ's life and doctrine, but she 
would dwell on that, and remarked, — 

" ■ I can understand all the rest, but this point is inex- 
plicable.' 

" Having in vain tried to illustrate the subject, she was 
asked, if she did not love her husband ? ' Certainly, and 
obey him too, usually.' 

" ' TVhat, without understanding all his thoughts, or seeing 
into his heart V 

" ' Ah, I see,' she replied ; ■ you mean we should be con- 
tent to serve G-od without understanding Him.' 

" ■ His own Son died for you ; what husband would love 
like that V 

" ' True, true.' 

" ' "Would you feel any happier if you could look into the 
Eternal God as you can look into your idols of papier- 
mache ?' 

" ' No,' — after a pause, ' I — I don't think I should ; he 
would not seem so great.' 

" ' You think it hard,' it was observed another day, ' to 
give up what you call merit ?' 

11 ' Yes,' she said, ■ I have done a good deal in my life for 
Pagodas, and monasteries, and it is very hard, — very hard.' 

" Ah, dear friends, if you could be here on the spot to re- 
alize these things, I do not know how you would feel, but I 
know how I feel, and that I cannot stay the tears, as this 
gifted woman sits before me, bound in the iron fetters of 
Buddhism, which are from childhood tightening, tightening, 



208 CONVERSATIONS WITH VISITORS. 

and are still drawing, drawing almost irresistibly, down to 
eternal woe. 

" Another Menkadau, an elderly lady, is perhaps equally 
intelligent, hut very different. She has a great intellect, 
understands almost before the words are spoken ; and will 
often turn round, and expound to the others : taking care, 
however, to give it as the sentiment of the teacher, not as 
her own. 

" Many attempt to make out that Christianity and Budd- 
hism are the same ; and some of these women appear really 
inclined to believe Jesus Christ to be Arumaday, the antici- 
pated Buddh ; but this old lady saw the difference at once. 
' They are not alike,' she remarked one day with emphasis, 
1 not alike ; they are like this,' holding up her hands in op- 
posite directions. Nothing could be more correct ; though 
not one in fifty will acknowledge it. 

" One day, several Mathoolaus or nuns came to see us, 
some of the first in the place. They asked for offerings. 
We had to tell them, as the Apostle did the poor lame man 
at the temple, that silver and gold we had none ; and gave 
them Mrs. Ann Judson's catechism, and read to them from 
the Scriptures, after which they departed respectfully, and 
apparently very much pleased. One of the number could 
read ; and I believe she is the only one who can, among the 
whole fifteen Mathoolaus of Toungoo. 

" They seemed to receive the gospel, — and it would not 
be strange if they should hereafter worship Jesus Christ in 
connection with Graudama and the Nahts ; and this is what it 
is imagined a great many Burmans will do. Indeed, were 
the gospel to be now suddenly withdrawn from the Province, 
undoubtedly a few years hence the traveller would find Je- 
sus Christ's image among the idols of Toungoo. On one oc- 
casion, as many as thirty promised, and apparently with all 



THE LOYE OF CHRIST. 209 

sincerity, that they would hereafter worship Jesus Christ. 
But when they were asked if would cast away their idols, — 
* How can we V they replied, ' the religion of our fathers ? 
We'll worship both, Jesus Christ and Gaudama.' ' True,' 
they were answered, ' it has been the religion of your fath- 
ers for some time past ; so has this country been the coun- 
try of your fathers, but ' — here the word was suddenly ta- 
ken up by a Burman officer standing by, who has enrolled 
his name as a decided believer, — ' but God has pitied us,' 
he continued, anticipating the thought, ' He saw our distress, 
under Moung Byu, Moung Kyouk Long, and others, and sent 
the English to deliver us. Now He sends the Gospel of 
His Son to liberate us from the Nahts, and all their evils. 
Good ! good ! good !' 

1 ' Many have been evidently touched with this thought ; 
and tearful eyes have been seen in Toungoo, in four or five 
instances, when the infinite love of the Redeemer has been 
portrayed. 

" This may appear a slight thing, and unworthy of notice, 
that a heart should feel when a bleeding Saviour is suspen- 
ded before them — but it is not so in heathen lands. The 
mind is so withered and crusted with the mire of demonola- 
try, there is no room for the Holy Spirit to enter. And yet 
such hearts as these do soften — repent — believe. We can, 
as yet, count but two believers who appear to be heartily 
decided to give up idolatry among the Burman females of 
this city, but they cry out by scores ; ' Don't go away ; your 
words comfort us.' 

" One woman came some miles one morning from a dis- 
tant hamlet to hear of our religion ; and after listening with 
patient attention for more than an hour, she said, ' I think I 
shall believe. Your words sound good — they seem to make 
my heart light. But you are going away, — how can we be- 



210 ZEAL OF SHAPAU. 

lieve ? We hear a little— it seems true— but we don't well 
understand — we can't go alone. Do leave some Christian 
Burman to teach us. The sun has risen a little way up ; but 
when you leave it will sink back— and all is gone. 7 

" Many a time have I gone to my room with a heavy heart 
after such interviews, knowing the words were too true. 
But we try to inspire hope ; and sometimes draw the atten- 
tion to the power of the Christian religion, illustrating it by 
the new moon increasing to the full, and asking if anything 
can stay its course ? Or when a vessel of palm wine is set 
in the house, if it will not surely all ferment ? 

" ' Ah, yes, yes !' — they exclaim, their faces brightening, 
1 you mean the Bible ; true, true, that is good ; you will leave 
that with us.'" 

The time for departure was drawing near, health was fail- 
ing, and Dr. Mason was anxious to find a man who would go 
out to the Bghais, a tribe which had never yet been visited. 
One of the boatmen, who had navigated their canoe up the 
turbid waters of the Salween, was a Karen Christian named 
Shapau. As a boatman he earned much, but he was not hap- 
py. He had neglected to speak of Christ and His salvation 
to his friends and countrymen. One day he was asked, if 
he would not like to go and work for God ? His eye bright- 
ened as he replied in the affirmative. As he could speak 
Pwo Karen and Burmese he was employed as interpreter 
among the Burmese, and became deeply interested in the 
work, so that when Mrs. Mason commenced her school in 
Toungoo she made him her assistant, and he proved to be a 
very useful and efficient teacher. He was a humble man, 
and had a very poor opinion of his own abilities, and when 
first asked to undertake it, said, "I cannot teach, I know 
nothing myself." Mrs. Mason made him sit down by her 
side, and began to catechise him and to draw him out, until 



A LEADER RAISED UP. 211 

at last he exclaimed with the greatest simplicity and astonish- 
ment, " Why I did not think I knew half so much." When 
Dr. Mason was inquiring for a man for the Bghai tribe, it 
was noticed that Shapau looked very thoughtful, and one day 
he ventured to express the wish that he knew enough to teach 
the Bghais. "Perhaps you do," was the reply, " but would 
you be willing to leave your child, your friends, and go among 
these uncivilized tribes, and work for only four rupees a 
month ; which, you know, is all that we can give you V He 
left for a time, looking very thoughtful, doubtless to pray. 
After awhile he came again, and when the inquiry was put 
to him, " Well ! Shapau, can you go ?" he said, " I cannot go 
for four rupees, but I can go for the love of Christ !" This 
is an illustration of the spirit of devotedness which actuated 
these disciples, and led them to surrender up everything to 
the service of their Lord. 

But here our narrative must pause. It was originally 
with difficulty, and at great hazard that Dr. Mason, in his 
feeble health, had commenced this mission at Toungoo ; but 
now, completely overcome and exhausted, he was compelled 
at the very moment when all seemed fairest and most hope- 
ful, to abandon this field of labor. Our narrative has now 
to record how the Lord of the harvest, in answer to the pray- 
ers of his people, raised up from this Karen nation a man 
gifted with all the needful graces for proclaiming and estab- 
lishing the gospel. It is to this man's singularly interesting 
and remarkable history that we have now to direct our at- 
tention. 



212 



SAU QUALA S FATHER. 



CHAPTEE XII. 

SATJ QUALA. 

" An example of the believers in word, ia conversation, in charity, in 
spirit, in faith, in purity.'-' — 1 Timothy iv. 12. 

The history of Sau Quala, the first Karen missionary at 
Toungoo, is an interesting illustration of what, by the grace 
of Grod, an earnest, zealous, devoted heart can do, which, 
consecrating all its powers to the Redeemer's service, seeks 
to win souls to him. It is a proof also that God does 
choose the weak things, and the base things of the world, 
and things which are despised, to work out his own gracious 
purposes, ' that no flesh should glory in his presence.' Sau 
Quala was the child of Karen parents, born and nurtured in 
one of the wildest of their mountain glens. A cascade came 
leaping from rock to rock, through a deep gorge, just below 
his mother's dwelling ; its bright, clear, dancing waters, a 
fit emblem of his own future healthful active course. His 
father's proud nature had long chafed under the bitterness 
of Burman wrongs, and longed and sighed for deliverance. 
Often would his full heart give utterance to such expres- 
sions as these : " The bamboo leaf falls on thorns, the thorns 
pierce it. Thorns fall on it, the thorns spear it. Our hab- 
itation is a thorn bush. We come upon the Siamese, the Si- 
amese make us slaves. We fall upon the Burmese, the Bur- 
mese make us slaves." He hated his Buddhist oppressors. 
He hated their religion, their pagodas, their priests, every- 
thing that was theirs. He hated the taskmaster who ordered 



sau quala's boyhood. 213 

him to-day to drag boats, or pull logs, and the officer who 
commanded him to-morrow to cut bamboos, or ratans, to 
gather spices, or collect damper or bees-wax. " The iron 
had entered into his. soul," and even his gentle uncomplain- 
ing wife could scarcely win a smile from his darkened spirit, 
as she labored patiently, planted the cotton, weeded it, 
gathered it, spun it, dyed it, and then wove it into cloth for 
garments for himself and their children. 

Reports, however, had reached them that the white men 
had come by sea to the Burmese ports, and believing that 
these white men were destined to be their deliverers, they 
began to look forward with hope to the day when their gall- 
ing yoke would be broken, and the oppressed go free. It 
was about this time that their second child was born, and to 
him they gave the significant name of Quala — ' Hope ;' be- 
cause, they said : " We hope happiness will come to us in 
his days." 

It was no wonder that the boy should grow up with a 
thirst for liberty, or that he should treasure in his memory 
every tradition which prophesied of the emancipation of his 
nation from the Burnian rule. As he kept watch over his 
father's rice-field, and drove away the peacocks and the 
monkeys, his boyish fancy was occupied with the time when 
the promised deliverers would come, and he would sing in 
wild cadences — 

" The children of God are those who took 
From the hand of God, the Holy Book ; 
The white foreigners are the sons of the Lord, 
They obtained of old his Holy word." 

The hour of deliverance did come, and the English took 
possession of Tavoy, when he was about fourteen or fifteen 
years old. They had not been in the place many days, when 
Quala accompanied by his father and mother, went into the 



214: HIS CONVERSION. 

city. To their great surprise and alarm, they were no soon- 
er within the walls than they were taken before the Gover- 
nor and several military officers ; but they were soon re-as- 
sured by the kind treatment they met with. The Governor 
would not allow them to prostrate themselves before him, 
according to oriental custom, but bade them stand erect, and» 
after talking kindly to them, dismissed them with presents 
of money, and a turban for each 

It was about two or three years after this period, that 
Ko-thah-byu, the first Karen convert, was baptized, and 
went forth immediately to preach the gospel to his country- 
men. It seems that a " converted Karen no more thinks of 
asking for a licence to preach, than he would for a licence 
to pray." The first impulse of his spiritual life is to declare 
what God has done for his soul, and to invite all whom he 
can reach to believe and live. Ko-thah-byu was an eminent 
example of this, and the first house in which he proclaimed 
the message of mercy, was that of Quala's father. 

There the neighbors assembled in the evening, under the 
impression that Ko-thah-byu would, according to their cus- 
tom, trace his genealogy, to show that he was not an enemy, 
but a relative ; but he had better things to tell them, and 
one at least, the youthful Quala, believed to the saving of 
his soul, and said within himself, " Is not this the very thing 
we have been waiting for ?" 

Quala's father was strongly opposed to the new religion, 
and the boy had to learn that it was not an easy thing to fol- 
low his divine Master, but that it involved taking up the 
cross, if he would go after Him. 

Mr. Boardman, not long after, went to the village to preach, 
but so strong was his father's opposition, that Quala did not 
venture to go and hear him. Yet the seed of eternal life 
had taken root in his heart, and love to the Saviour was 



HIS MOTHER'S CONVERSION AND DEATH. 215 

burning there too fervently to be quenched. His mother 
too had embraced the truth and sought every opportunity of 
hearing the word of life. In Mary's spirit she sat at the 
feet of the teacher, drinking in, from early dawn till late at 
night, the word which was able to save her soul. She was a 
lovely picture, with her large beaming eyes, full of intelli- 
gence, fixed upon the speaker, or occasionally, when there 
was a pause, turning to those near, that she might recom- 
mend in tones of persuasive tenderness, those truths which 
had wrought so great a change in her, and filled her with 
such bright hopes of future blessedness. She only lived a 
few years after her baptism, but they were years of spiritual 
growth : first the blade, then the ear, and then the full corn 
in the ear, and then the gathering into the heavenly garner. 
Quala resembled his mother in many points of her char- 
acter, especially in her stedfastness and hope. The fierce- 
ness of his father's opposition was, at last, so great, that he 
sought permission to visit an elder half brother, who was 
living on the eastern side of the mountains ; and thither he 
started one foggy morning with his wallet thrown across his 
shoulder containing all he possessed on earth, his pruning 
knife and betel box, and. a few treasured Burmese tracts. 
The path was soon lost in the streamlet, until pressing on, 
he came to a point where another torrent came flowing in 
from the north, and upon the spur which rose precipitously 
between them, his sure foot soon found a pathway, which 
conducted him to the summit of the mountain. In pursuing 
the same route fifteen years after, his elder brother was at- 
tacked and devoured by a tiger ; but the angel of the Lord 
had encamped roundabout His young servant, and conducted 
him in safety to the sanctuary he had prepared. Quala's 
brother lived in a sequestered dell at the foot of the moun- 
tains, and here, in habits of prayer Quala fulfilled his daily 



216 RESIDENCE WITH HIS BEOTEEE. 

duties, assisting his brother in the cultivation of the land 
As his mental faculties expanded and developed under the 
vivifying and strengthening influence of the grace of God, 
his thirst for knowledge grew also ; but there were no books 
in his own tongue, and he could not read in Burmese, indeed 
he scarcely understood the language colloquially. His ear- 
nest spirit was not however to be daunted by difficulties, 
which to many would have appeared insuperable, but unaid- 
ed and alone, he set himself to learn to read Burmese, be- 
fore he knew how to speak it. His elder brother, who knew 
a little Burmese, commenced the study with him, and long af- 
ter the evening shadows had fallen might they be seen by 
the light of their little lamp, poring over the page, forget- 
ting their weariness in the interest of the work before them. 
Dr. Mason says, " In my acquaintance with Karen converts, 
I have often observed, with admiration, the manner in which 
the mind when brought into a right moral state, not only 
craves for knowledge but knowledge of truth, for which it 
seems to possess an intuitive attraction." Quala had seen 
Burman books from his early childhood, but Buddhist errors 
had no attraction for him. It was not until he heard of 
Christian books, especially the Bible, that the desire for tKe 
ability to read was kindled within him. 

After spending some months in this peaceful manner, ha 
felt that it was his duty to return to his father, and to tell him 
of Christ's love to his soul, and of his desire to confess and 
to follow Him ; trusting that his father, seeing his stedfast- 
ness, might be induced to let him be baptized. But he met 
with nothing but reproach and anger ; and spiritless and dis- 
heartened, his faith failed, and he began to distrust God, and 
to murmur against his providences. " I will never go to the 
teacher as long as I live," he said, " and I will pray no more. 
When the righteous One appears, my father will suffer him- 



satj qtjala's peofession. 217 

self, and I will say, I did not dare to become a Christian, on 
account of my father." He adds, " I felt very unhappy. I 
wept all day, and thought I would starve myself to death." 

But the next day he repented of these feelings, and after 
a time returned to his brother's peaceful dwelling. Ere 
long, a company of inquirers went down to the city of Ta- 
voy ; amongst them was Sau Quala, and in December, 1830, 
he made a public profession of his faith, and was admitted 
into the church of Christ by baptism. Since then, for more 
than a quarter of a century, he has held on in a stedfast 
course ; and by his unblemished Christian character has won 
the respect, confidence, and affection of all connected with 
him. 

As soon as Quala was baptized, he began to tell of Christ, 
and to read and expound the Christian books that he pos- 
sessed to those about him. If his father listened and op- 
posed, he would meet him with irresistible arguments in the 
words of Scripture, — those words, " majestic in their own 
simplicity," — until his violent and unbelieving parent was 
silenced before the mighty truth of God. With the Karen 
converts, this desire to impart the knowledge of salvation 
seems a first principle of their new nature. Dr. Mason says, 
" When I first went to Tavoy, I found amongst the few 
Christian Karens, one man who could read Burmese very 
well, but had no power to communicate his ideas with facility 
to others. Another was unable to read, but was apt to teach 
and able to speak with fluency and power. Without consult- 
ing the missionary, or expecting remuneration for their la- 
bors, these men, whenever circumstances allowed, went out 
itinerating throughout the country. Wherever they got an 
assembly together, the reader read a portion of the Burmese 
Scriptures or a tract, while the speaker expounded and ex- 

10 



218 

horted in Karen. Very few men have been more successful 
preachers than these." 

When Boardman, the Karen missionary, was sinking into 
the grave, as we have before mentioned, he determined to 
spend his little remaining strength in visiting the jungle 
homes of the Karens near Tavoy. A party of them came in 
to assist in carrying the litter and in administering to his 
wants, and amongst that number was Quala. While en- 
camped in the forest, the dying missionary assisted by Dr 
Mason, who had just then arrived in the country, held daily 
meetings for teaching and prayer with the people. The early 
morn, the sultry noon, the quiet evening hour were witnesses 
to those solemn teachings, when one so soon to enter into 
the holy of holies spoke of life and death, of judgment and 
eternity. Quala, his mother and sister, were the first to 
come, the last to go away. They sought too to render every 
assistance they could to Mrs. Boardman ; and when at last 
his failing strength warned them that their beloved teacher 
was to be taken from them, Quala was amongst the number 
who carried that fading form to the little sequestered cove 
where, beneath the shadow of the broad-leaved trees, he wit- 
nessed the baptism of thirty -four Karens for whose salvation 
he had prayed and labored. 

It was the same hand that gently carried him to the boat 
which was to convey him home, but on the way thither his 
spirit fled, and " he was not, for Grod took him. " It was the 
same hand that bore the body to its last quiet resting place, 
there to slumber in dust, till it shall be reunited to the glo- 
rified spirit in the realms of everlasting day. What solemn 
thoughts must these scenes have kindled in the heart of 
Sau Quala ! They must have given a reality to the great 
truths he had heard and learned. He bad seen that to the 
Christian death was disarmed of its sting and of its terror, 



STUDIES UNDER DE. MASON. 219 

and that to depart and be with Christ, was esteemed bj him 
to be " far better." 

From the opportunity which Dr. Mason had of observing 
the character of Quala at this time, he was convinced that 
he had no ordinary mind or heart, and he therefore determin- 
ed to keep him in town, that he might study Karen with him, 
and that Quala might have the advantage of attending Mrs. 
Boardman's school. At this time Dr. Mason writes ; "During 
the first year of my residence in Tavoy, in 1831, I devoted 
a considerable portion of my time to visiting in every house 
in the city and suburbs, leaving at each a tract, and a portion 
of- Scripture, thus bringing into actual use the knowledge of 
Burmese that I was acquiring from day to day. Sau Quala 
often accompanied me in these excursions, and my knowledge 
of the language being quite imperfect, he would frequently 
repeat and enforce the sentiments I had uttered in more ' ac- 
ceptable words' though he often met with the savage rebuke, 
1 Who are you 1 You are just like that dog. He knows 
nothing but what he is taught, he goes or comes just as his 
master orders him.' He was unmoved, however, by their 
cutting sarcasm, and more open abuse. He took the Bible 
as it said, and Christ at his word, when he read, ' Blessed 
are ye when men shall revile, you, and persecute you, and 
shall say all manner of evil against you, falsely for my sake : 
— rejoice and be exceedingly glad ; for great is your reward 
in heaven ;' then he rejoiced at finding himself in circum- 
stances which entitled him to rejoice, and he looked heaven- 
ward for the reward of his labors. 

In 1833, Mr. Wade being obliged by sickness to return for 
a season to America and to abandon the work he had com- 
menced of preparing a translation of the Bible into Karen, 
Dr. Mason determined, although he had only been a short 
time in the country, to do what he could in preparatory work, 



220 HIS JOURNEY TO MAULMAIN. 

and after consulting Dr. Judson, he determined to send up 
to Maulmain his two most promising young men, Sau Quala 
and Kolapau, (who was afterwards ordained pastor of Matah) 
to study with Paulah, one of the Christian assistants, who 
had helped Mr. Wade in forming the alphabet, and in adapt- 
ing the Burman letters to Karen sounds. Dr. Judson in 
writing home in April, 1833, of a visit to Chummerah, the 
principal Karen settlement north of Maulmain, says with 
reference to the school : " The two most imporant students 
have been a couple of young men from Tavoy, whom brother 
Mason sent up to learn to read and become qualified to teach 
their countrymen in that province. They have come down 
with me and will return to Tavoy by the first opportunity.' 
These two were Quala and Kolapau. 

This journey to Maulmain was a great event in their lives ; 
for not a single Karen in the Tenasserim Provinces had ever 
been known to cross the river to the north since they first 
emigrated to the south, untold centuries ago. The traditions 
of this emigration are treasured up by the Karens, and the 
names of the Attaran and the Salween rivers, and Balu Is- 
land are familiar words. When, therefore, Quala reached 
Maulmain, it seemed to him like classic ground ; and when 
he gazed upon the ridge of hills crowned with pagodas : or 
strolled at sunset upon their side, and watched the rolling wa- 
ters of the Salween as it flows forth into the sea, he thought 
of the time when perhaps the homes of his ancestors had been 
there, and when their eyes had looked upon the same beau- 
teous scene. But where were they now ? Surely, that af- 
fecting thought would animate and rouse the energies of his 
spirit, as he thirsted to proclaim Christ and his salvation to 
the perishing souls around! Eighty-three Karens had been 
baptized at this time in the neighborhood of Maulmain alone, 
and about one hundred and seventy at Tavoy, but what were 



HE COLLECTS THE KAREN TRADITIONS. 221 

they among the many that still remained ? After three 
months' sojourn at Maulinain, Quala returned to Tavoy and 
continued with Dr. Mason ; not only assisting him in the 
translation of the New Testament, but, as we have seen, ac- 
companying him in his jungle and preaching tours. Dr. Ma- 
son says : " It was clear to me at the outset, that to be mas- 
ter of the Karen language, so as to be perfectly familiar with 
all the words and constructions I heard, would only be a 
small advance towards the knowledge of the language neces- 
sary to an adequate translation of the Bible. To supply this 
deficiency I employed Sau Quala to write down all the tradi- 
tions in prose with which he was acquainted, and when he had 
exhausted his own memory, I sent him to different individuals 
reputed to be particularly versed in these traditions, to col- 
lect whatever they remembered with which he was unac- 
quainted. I found also, that without a written literature 
they had a mass of fictitious stories in their memories, which 
in the long rainy nights or in their leisure hours, they were in 
the habit of repeating to each other. Sau Quala, therefore, was 
employed in committing to paper every poem or story that 
any ooeknew. In this way, Quala created for me and others 
after me, a Karen literature in prose and verse, of several 
manuscript volumes. Among the fragments are several sin- 
gular pieces in relation to the Karen Bible or book, which 
have manifestly been composed since Europeans went into 
India ; and notwithstanding their fabulous character, they 
show the high estimate the Karens have ever placed on Ka- 
ren books, and how well they were prepared to appreciate 
the Bible, when presented to them in their own tongue." 

" Again," Dr. Mason adds, " there are many ambiguous 
passages in the Bible, especially in the Old Testament : and 
it is the duty of a translator to present such passages in his 
version, precisely in the same dubious light in which they 



222 ASSISTS DK. MASON IN HIS TRANSLATIONS. 

appear in the original, whenever it is possible to do so. It 
requires far more skill and knowledge of the language to 
render such passages correctly than the definite ones ; and 
Quala, after the various aspects of a passage had been shown 
him, would often exercise his philological skill to discover a 
word or form of expression sufficiently generic to embrace 
all the specific significations which might be extracted from 
the language." 

There can be no doubt, that a course of study like this 
must have been one main source of the power with which he 
preached. For while his mind was supplied with such vari- 
ety of illustration, it must have given his language much 
fulness and precision of expression. Earnestly did he thirst 
also for a more full and perfect understanding of the Scrip- 
tures. As soon as the New Testament was translated, he 
was anxious for a work in Karen, and Kitto's Cyclopasdia is 
perhaps an embodiment in English of his idea. In the 
Morning Star, a Karen periodical which Dr. Mason com- 
menced in 1842, and for which Quala often wrote, he says: 

" Consider the generation of the fathers, they had no 
books ; they had none to teach them of the things in heaven 
and the things on earth — they knew nothing ; but now, 
through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the American 
teachers from the West have come and taught us, and we 
have obtained books in our own language. Then when they 
instruct us, and explain to us the Holy Scriptures, we ought, 
every one of us, to seize on their instructions and to retain 
them ; for if it had not been for the teachers, we should have 
remained without books, in ignorance and darkness, to this 
day. Let us, then, in the strength of God, put forth strenu- 
ous efforts to acquire a knowledge of books, for should the 
teachers leave, we should be left as orphans. While they 
are with us, let us make every possible effort to study, so 



HIS EFFORTS IN KAREN LITERATURE. 223 

that we may understand for ourselves independently ; and, 
should the teachers be no longer with us, that we may be 
able to instruct each other, 

" Teachers, there is one thing I want you to do for us 
above all things. I wish you to publish notices of the an- 
cestors, and biographies of the persons mentioned in Scrip- 
ture. Were you to explain completely the things in the 
Bible, there would be afterwards do room for doubt or dif- 
ference of opinion. Then if the teachers should die or leave 
us, our means of knowledge would still be full and accurate. 
We love our children, yet we can only benefit them while 
we are with them ; but the teachers are able to benefit future 
generations. When our parents died, their possessions were 
gone ; but the possession of the teachers will remain. Our 
parents could benefit us in this life only, but the teachers 
benefit us both for this life and the life to come. Brethren, 
had not the teachers come to us with the word of God, we 
should have' known nothing, but have been still in dark- 
ness." 

At this time his father was very earnest in trying to in- 
duce him to return to the jungles. He was promised an 
equivalent for his son's services, and from that time never 
troubled him again. Quala wrote at this period : " I was 
very zealous in studying the word of God, and prayed with 
brokenness of heart. I thought of nothing else but to be 
skilled in the books. This occupied my whole mind contin- 
ually." Thus this young disciple grew in grace, drinking 
in the word of life, which was able to save his soul. 

In his early childhood he had, according to the custom of 
the East, been betrothed to a little girl in another village, 
but they had seen nothing of each other, and grew up 
strangers in sympathy and affection. After Quala's baptism, 
the subject of his marriage at times induced serious thoughts, 



224 HIS MARRIAGE. 

and led him to commit his way to the Lord more earnestly. 
One of the elders of his village, according to the Karen 
custom, was deputed to visit his betrothed, to ascertain the 
nature of her feelings towards him. The only remark she 
made was, " Oh, yes ; I love Sau Quala amazingly, now he 
is baptized. Had he not been baptized I should not have 
loved him at all." This signified, according to their mode 
of expression, a decided rejection, and here their engage- 
ment ended, and they never met again. 

About this time in the little class of Karen girls under 
Mrs. Mason's care, was one named Muphau, -" Celestial 
flower ;" she was indeed a flower of heavenly birth and 
growth, and between her and Quala an attachment sprung 
up, ending in a union which has been eminently blessed to 
both. She has greatly strengthened her husband's hands, 
encouraged his heart under all his labors, and has set a 
bright example to her Christian sisters of what a Christian 
wife, and especially a pastor's wife, should be. When her 
husband had an offer of lucrative employment under Govern- 
ment, she never for one moment yielded to the temptation 
of a position of greater ease and emoluments ; but when an 
opportunity of a larger field and increased labors in the ser- 
vice of their heavenly Master was presented to them, she 
was ready for the call, and said, " This makes me happy," 
literally, " hits my heart ." A Christian oflicer, who once 
accompanied Dr. Mason in a preaching tour in the jungle, 
was much struck by her appearance, as they came suddenly 
upon her, standing on a projecting cliff before them, her 
long tasseled shawl thrown round her graceful figure, and 
the embroidered scarf wound round her head like a coronet, 
setting off her fine expressive features to perfection. " Sure- 
ly Quala has got the flower of the jungle," he exclaimed, 
" she reminds one of Scott's description of Helen Mac- 



HIS WIFE. 225 

Gregor." She was indeed one of its flowers, and long may 
she be spared to grace the home of her husband, and to adorn 
her Christian profession in all things. 

From the time of his marriage, Quala nsed often to ac- 
company the missionary in preaching tours into the jungle. 
Many were the happy hours thus employed, when laden with 
the message of salvation, they would start forth in the balmy 
freshness of a tropic morning. As the air^ perfumed with 
fragrance, and the light mists rising upward with the sun 
revealed more and more of the bright landscape before them, 
how often would the heart exclaim : — 

" If God has made this world so fair 
Where sin and death abound, 
How beautiful beyond compare 
Will paradise be found I" 

Very interesting were some of the discussions with the 
simple sons of the forest. The following is a specimen of 
the way in which Quala would address them. To an idolater 
he would say, " Can the image save those who worship it 1 
Think ! How can it posibly save them ? How many trees 
have sprung up which the image has created ? How many 
clumps of bamboo are there, that the image has made ? 
How many men has it formed ? Where are the animals, or 
even the insects, that it has brought into existence ? It has 
done nothing. Nor is the image self-existent : it was made 
by man. Rather than worship the image, ought we not to 
worship the man who made it, for his superior power 7 But 
the maker was a thief. 

" Do you doubt it ? Consider ! earth, wood, stone, gold, 
silver, lead, and copper are, because God created them. He 
who makes an image, takes God's earth, God's wood, God's 
rocks, God's gold, God's silver, God's lead, God's copper. 
Does he ask for it ? No ! he takes it without leave, says he 

10* 



226 HIS MISSIONARY DISCUSSIONS. 

will form an image and worship it ; thus making himself a 
son of folly. Were we to disobey our parents and treat 
their commands with contempt, following our own will in 
everything, would they not be angry ? Now, He who is 
greater than father, greater than mother, the only true God, 
who cannot die, or cease to" exist, commands ; ' Make no 
image, worship no image, worship me.' Against this God 
have we sinned, in all our thoughts, in all our deeds. There 
is no part of us free from transgression. The hand has 
transgressed, the foot has transgressed, the eye has trans- 
gressed, the ear has transgressed, the mouth has trans- 
gressed, the mind has transgressed, the heart has trans- 
gressed. Our transgressions are greater than the hills, 
loftier than the mountains. It is not fitting we ascend to 
the presence of God. It is fitting that we descend to the 
lowest depths of hell, and the great grace of God alone still 
keeps us here. These heavens so wide, this earth so great, 
everything in the many waters and numerous lands, God 
created. He formed man holy, exempt from old age, sick- 
ness, and death ; but he disobeyed God, obeying Satan ; and 
thus brought misery on himself and all creation. Still God 
did not give us up. He had compassion upon us, and sent 
His only Son to save the slaves of Satan, and who had no 
rest in his service. To deliver us from the hands of Satan, 
and to give us rest, He bought us with His own blood, He 
had no compassion on His own great life, but He had com- 
passion on men who were going down to hell. He died on 
the cross for us, on account of our sins, and thus threw open 
the gate at the foot of the road, so that man is made again ac- 
quainted with God. Surely, the children of earth ought to 
worship God, ought to perform His work, ought to observe 
His word, ought to follow His path, ought to obey His will ; 
but man makes himself obstinate and his ears crooked. He 



HIS DISCUSSIONS. 227 

worships not, he serves not, he obeys not His word, follows 
not His path, submits not to His will. But he thus fulfils the 
language of- the elders, who said, 'Children and grandchild- 
ren, words good and white are scarcely received. Rottenness 
has many associates, sweetness few.' " 

When addressing Karens who expressed their determina- 
tion to follow in the path of their ancestors, he remarked ; 
11 Some of you object ; — ' The tortoise dying dies in its shell. 
Our mother dying, let us occupy our mother's chamber ; our 
father dying, let us take our father's hall. The tigress 
striped, the cubs striped. Let not the tree depart from its 
shadow. If mother has gone to hell, we will go after her ; 
if father has gone to hell, we will go after him.' Let those 
who speak thus think of suffering on earth, not to speak of 
hell. If a tiger devoured our mother, dare we go out and 
give ourselves to be devoured by tigers. If a crocodile 
killed her, or fire devoured her, or she was drowned, dare 
we go out and give ourselves to die by the crocodile, fire, or 
water ? We can be very bold while the tiger is out of 
sight ; but when we meet it face to facevwe are panic-strick- 
en, and scatter, one one way and two two ways. Our father 
and mother did not hear what we hear, did not know what 
we know. It is of God's special grace that these things 
have come to us. The elders of antiquity yearned to hear 
the word of God, but heard it not. That blessing was re- 
served for us. Still it is according to the saying, ' If the 
lake is pleasant the fish remain.' In a large lake where 
there is nothing to devour, the fish and its waters never fail, 
the lake is pleasant. Yet if there be no fish in it, it does 
not call the fish to come unwillingly. If the fish wish to 
dwell in it, they remain ; if not, they depart. God is the 
lake, we are the fish. Unless we are in God, ere long some- 



228 HIS DISCUSSIONS. 

thing will come and devour us. The fire of hell will devour 
us. Then dwell in God." 

A caviller once remarked : " God is possessed of infinite 
power, and has a perfect knowledge of all things. "Why did 
He create Satan ? Did He not know that he would come 
and deceive man ? If He knew that he would come and 
destroy why did He create him ? If God compassionates 
man, if He loves him, why did He create the tree of temp- 
tation 1 Did He not know that if a man ate of it he would 
die ? And if He knew, why did He create it ? Why has 
He made men so that some come forth from the womb blind, 
some hump-backed, some with dead limbs, some with twisted 
limbs, some with crooked limbs, some white, some black ? 
And why are some born dead ? Why do some die in infancy, 
some in childhood, some in youth, some in manhood, some 
in old age ? W 7 hy are some insane, some idiots, some fools, 
some wise ? Why are some masters and others slaves ; some 
rich and others poor ? Could not God make them all alike ? 
Or is it because He loved some and did not love others V* 

Quala replied : " God is above man, above kings, above 
all. Kings are obeyed without asking reasons. We ought 
not to reply against God. He is our Father. The child un- 
derstands not what the father does. The axe and the knife 
kill, yet without them the father could not obtain food for 
the child. He does not allow the child to handle them, but 
one with crooked ears, when unobserved by its father, takes 
hold of them and cuts himself. Parents give children many 
playthings ; but because they love them they do not allow 
them to play with the axe and the knife. God acts according 
to His own will. The house-owner builds a house, and de- 
cides in relation to its parts. He disposes of the timbers 
or bamboos according to their proper positions. That which 
is too short he lengthens ; that which is too long he shortens ; 



HIS DISCUSSIONS. 229 

that which will not answer his purpose he throws away. 
That which is shortened does not say to the builder, ' Why 
hast thou shortened me ?' nor that which is lengthened, ' Why 
hast thou lengthened me V The timbers or bamboos do not 
say, ' Make us this way or that way ; make us not that way 
or this way.' The materials know nothing, but the owner 
of the house knows, and directs everything according to his 
own will. God is the Owner of the house, and we ought to 
submit to His dispensations in silence. Then He will use 
us as parts of His building ; that is, we shall become His 
children and servants. But if we murmur and complain 
against God, we become like the bamboos and timber, which 
being unsuitable for the building, were rejected by the build- 
er, and thrown away. Some of God's judicial arrangements 
are in order that we may praise Him, some that we may re- 
pent of our sins, some that we may discern between good 
and evil, some that we may not hope in transitory things on 
earth, some that we may avoid hell, and go to heaven. None 
are made for our disadvantage, but all for the advantage of 
man. To those who murmur, the Holy book says, ' Who art 
thou, man ! that repliest against God ? Shall the thing 
formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me 
thus ? Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same 
lump to make one vessel to honor, and another to dishonor ?' " 
To nominal believers in the Christian settlements, his 
language was : " Not having become true Christians your 
profession of faith and your avoidance of external vices are 
of no avail. When you are with Christians you do as Chris- 
tians do ; when you are with the world you do as the world 
does. You regard yourselves as worshippers of God, and 
still in heart you follow the will of Satan. You do not love 
God, you do not fear sin. You say, ' Ah, we have not been 
baptized. If we do sin it is of no consequence. The sin 



230 MISSIONARY JOUKNEYINGS. 

will be done away when we become disciples.' Think, and 
repent of your sins quickly. The Scriptures say, we cannot 
add a cubit *to our lives ; so, that death may not find you in 
your sins, avoid iniquity ; and first of all things put your 
trust in the Lord, accepting cordially His commands. The 
Bible says: 'Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord.' 
Wherefore, to obtain this blessedness, let it be the first thing 
with you to rouse yourselves with energy from your lethargy. 
Remain not between Christ and the world, ever vibrating 
from one side to the other. The Holy Scriptures say, we 
cannot serve two masters ; so choose the Master who is able 
to save, and confide earnestly in Him." 

It was in this way that Quala was trained for the ministry. 
For fifteen successive years he accompanied the missionary 
in his jungle tours, sometimes extending to three or four 
hundred miles, till every hamlet was visited in the provinces 
of Tavoy andMergui, in which Karens were likely to be found. 
Frequently they left the usual passes, and branching off 
across the chain of mountains in four or five different direc- 
tions, would visit every secluded nook, and coming down the 
Tenasserim upon a frail native raft, would sometimes scarce- 
ly escape being overset in the rapids. Often has Quala 
shared with the teacher these hallowed labors, sleeping under 
the shadow of the same forest tree, where, perhaps, the tiger's 
footprints might be traced in the morning, not many yards 
from the place where they had slept. Together they laid 
the foundation of many little churches in these regions, and 
travelled and preached from hamlet to hamlet, from glen to 
glen, watching for the first dawnings of grace, for the first 
fruits of the Spirit; until this young servant of the Lord 
was himself well furnished in every good word and work, 
for the service of the ministry and the responsibilities of the 
pastorate. 



HE BECOMES A PASTOK. 231 

But we must hasten on. The Karen New Testament was 
completed; and Dr. Mason, no longer requiring the services 
of Sau Quala for this work, determined to place him in charge 
of the church at Pyeekhya. It was the most central and the 
most important of the little churches gathered on the moun- 
tains, and gave him a position in which his influence might be 
felt and exerted in the country round. Excepting in the ad- 
ministration of the ordinances^ he was the pastor of the church 
from the beginning, but he was not ordained till five years 
afterwards. Sau Quala had been early impressed with the 
duty and desirableness of the native churches taking meas- 
ures to support their ministers and schoolmasters. He en- 
deavored, therefore, to inculcate the importance of this duty 
upon his people. "Without its having been suggested, he and 
his wife kept an accurate account of all that had been given 
by the disciples for this purpose during the first year, and no 
less than three hundred and eighty-seven presents were 
brought in. 

It was not long after Quala's settlement that Dr. Mason 
visited him. After slowly ascending the mountain by a steep 
and narrow path, they seated themselves to rest upon a lit- 
tle level spot upon the hill side. Ten or twelve years had 
passed since they had first sat together there. Quala had 
cut down some bamboos which impeded their view to the 
west. The spotless blue heavens were over their heads, 
while the clouds, like snow-drifts, were moving lazily far be- 
neath their feet. The Pyeekhya, Putsauoo, and Palouk riv- 
ers were discovered here and there peeping from beneath 
the bright green verdure, as they meandered through glen 
and gorge, dale and valley. In the direction of Mergui on 
the south-west, huge rocks towered in grotesque peaks over 
the ocean's waves, and near at hand every dell and dingle 



232 PROGRESS AMONGST THE KARENS. 

was adorned with the loveliest flowers. They could say with 
truth, — 

" Oar rocks are rough ; but smiliDg there, 

The acacia waves her golden hair, 

Lovely and sweet, nor lov'd the less, 

For flowering in the wilderness." 

Karen hamlets lay hidden at intervals throughout the wide 
extended forest below ; ten years before not a single Chris- 
tian heart beat in one of them. 

" When," said the teacher at that time, " shall these vales 
resound with the songs of the redeemed ? When shall we 
look on Christian churches in these green fields ?" Ten 
years before Quala had answered : " Hereafter, teacher, here- 
after." And now as they gazed again upon that lovely scene 
of hill and dale, and rock and ocean, although the face of na- 
ture was unchanged, the Spirit of the living God had been 
at work among the simple-hearted inhabitants of the hamlets, 
and in Pyeekhya alone Quala could rejoice over a hundred 
souls who owned Jesus as their Lord. From Putsauoo, Pa- 
louk, and Toungbyouk on the north where little churches 
had grown up in the interval, they could almost catch the 
echoes of their hymns of praise ; and when they looked to 
the south upon those hills where their feet had first carried 
the message of salvation, and could count, in hamlet after 
hamlet, some precious souls born of God, the depth of their 
emotion was too great to find expression in words. At last 
Quala observed, " God will do greater things than these ;" 
and God has done greater things, and will, we trust, continue 
to do so, *' until all Burmah worships the eternal God." 

About this time Dr. Mason, in writing to the Executive 
Committee at home, said : " Sau Quala is the assistant that 
has been writing by my side every rains for eight or ten 
years ; and he has been the almost constant companion of my 






233 

travels ever since I entered the mission. With him I first 
began the study of the Karen language ; and with him I com. 
menced the translation of the New Testament, and he has 
continued with me throughout the work. Besides copying 
for me, I have constantly consulted him as I went along for 
words, their signification, and their construction, precisely as 
in cultivated languages a student consults his dictionaries 
and grammars ; while I have thus been gathering knowledge 
from him, I have not been unmindful of imparting knowledge 
to him. 

" I have often thought that could I leave him, when my 
labors close on earth, an able minister of the New Testament, 
I should not have labored in vain ; and, latterly, I have in- 
dulged the pleasing hope that God would more than fulfil my 
desire, and make him a useful minister even while I live. 
Formerly his mind was exceedingly obtuse, as are the minds 
of uncultivated people generally, and utterly unable to make 
any rational distinction between words and things that dif- 
fered ; but he now possesses, comparatively, quite a discrim- 
inating mind ; and I am sometimes surprised at the nice 
distinctions that he occasionally points out as existingbetween 
the signification of words. I do not suppose there is any one 
of his nation that can make any approach to him in the mat- 
ter of judicious criticism on Karen composition. This is 
saying nothing to the disparagement of any one else, for no 
other has had the same years of discipline that he has had. 
He has, however, obtained something more valuable than a 
power of criticism ; he has obtained a very tolerable know- 
ledge of the principal parts of the New Testament and of 
the sentiments of Scripture in general. Furthermore, he is 
' apt to teach,' and a very good preacher. When in the jungle 
he is continually engaged in informal preaching, from house 
to house, and by the way side ; I often set him to preach at 



234: DR. MASON'S OPINION OF HIM. 

evening meetings, when I have an opportunity of hearing his 
more regular productions ; and he frequently ,gives an exposi- 
tion of Scripture, of which an educated man at home would 
not be ashamed. In addition to his other acquirements, 
Quala has grown in grace so much latterly, that, were there 
any particular necessity for it, he might be ordained." 

In 1844, Dr. Mason, accompanied by Mr. Vinton, visited 
Pyeekhya, and remained with Quala and his people for about 
three weeks. During that time they were visited by one of 
those remarkable outpourings of the Holy Spirit's influence 
which are not uncommon in America, and with which we have 
occasionally been blessed in our own country. Here Quala 
witnessed some of those extraordinary means which the 
Spirit cf all gra^ is sometimes pleased to use in bringing 
sinners to Christ ; quickening dead souls to life, and reviving 
the slumbering graces of the children of God. Here, too, 
his faith in the power of believing prayer was strengthened, 
and he learnt something of the deep import of those gracious 
words — " Ask, and ye shall have." In describing the scene 
he said ; " When the teachers and disciples prayed in 
earnest, the Holy Spirit came down upon the unconverted, 
and they came forward, requesting to be baptized. Many 
of these were people with whom I had labored and exhorted 
before the meeting, and some said to me, ' We will wait a 
year;' others, 'We will wait two years;' others, 'We will 
look on a little longer ;' but when the Holy Spirit touched 
them, they repented and became Christians. Many of those 
who had been among the unconverted came forward and con- 
fessed their sins and transgressions publicly. They took up 
the habit immediately of private prayer in the jungle, and 
became very anxious for their unconverted relatives, going 
and inviting many to the meeting. Some confessed sins that 
had been committed in secret, and prayed with sobs and tears. 






CON VERSION OF A PRIEST. 235 

Many others resolved to become Christians, and many Chris- 
tians grew in grace. Brethren, these things are the work of 
the Holy Spirit, but they are spiritually discerned. Those 
whose minds are enlightened see the power of God in them, 
and wonder and praise the Lord. The advantages of these 
meetings for prayer for the outpouring of the Ho'iy Spirit 
are great. The graces of Christians are increased, the un- 
converted obtain new hearts, and those who listen understand 
the easier."" 

There was one case of conversion in connection with this 
revival which we cannot forbear mentioning. Mr. Vinton 
had desired the assistant to write down the names of the 
principal unconverted people in the neighborhood, and one 
evening they were read out, as subjects or prayer. Among 
the names was that of a Bong-ko, or religious teacher, a 
man of some note amorg the people, who, hearing that his 
name had been so used, was very angry. He wanted no 
prayer to be made for him. One evening, some time after, 
to the surprise of all-, he and his wife walked into the 
meeting. He said he had not come to be a Christian, but to 
hear. It was felt that God had led him there and had pur- 
poses of mercy towards him, and before another week had 
passed away, he had openly declared himself to be the 
Lord's. He was determined to be a Christian, and that now. 
As soon as their son-in-law heard of their determination, for 
his wife also was converted with him, he became greatly 
enraged, and declared he would leave them, which he ulti- 
mately did. It was a great grief to the old people, for, ac- 
cording to the Karen custom, the sons-in-law usually culti- 
vate the field and provide for the parents of their wives. 
But under this trial they remained calm and unmoved, trust- 
ing in the Lord, and have gone on stedfastly in His ways. 

At the close of these heart-stirring scenes in Pyeekhya, 



236 QTJALA IS OKDAINED. 

Quala accompanied Dr. Mason and Mr. Yinton to Newville, 
the Karen station north of Maulmain. Nearly ten years 
had passed since Quala's first visit in 1833, and great 
changes had taken place in that interval. Then the eighty- 
three Karens who had been baptized were just entering on 
the Christian race : now they had completed their course, 
or were tried Christians among two or three hundred more 
recent converts. At Newville they held similar meetings 
to those at Pyeekhya and with similar results ; and Quala 
must have returned to his mountain home with quickened 
faith and hope in the glorious promises of God. 

It was on the 28th April, 1844, that Sau Quala was or- 
dained to the office of the ministry, and in writing at that 
time he says : " This is of the grace of God. Great is God's 
goodness. Lord, when we were in darkness thou placedst 
us in the light ; when we were in distress and difficulty thou 
placedst us in prosperity and ease. We will praise thy 
goodness to us as long as we live, throughout our whole ex- 
istence. Make our light, our wisdom, our understanding of 
the Holy Scriptures, of Thee, and of thy love, to increase. 
Give us, God, to understand the deep things of Thee. Thy 
mercy and thy watchful care over us we can never suffi- 
ciently praise. Have mercy upon us and watch over us to 
the end." 

We are now brought to the time in Quala's history when 
his mind frequently dwelt upon the desire, early formed, to 
be the Lord's messenger of salvation to the province of 
Toungoo. In the wise and inscrutable providence of God, 
the door which had been so long closed to the entrance of 
the gospel was about to be opened, and already he was work- 
ing in the heart of this man. We have the following inter- 
esting account from the pen of Mr. Cross of Tavoy. 

" Some three years before the last Burmese war, a Karen 



STORY OF DUMOO. 237 

by the name of Diimoo, a native of the region of Toungoo, 
fell in with a company of Burmese in his own country who 
were going to the south. He accompanied them in hopes of 
finding his daughter, who had married and gone with her 
husband in that direction. This company, according to Du- 
moo's story, were seized by the British Government on sus- 
picion that they were dacoits. One of them was a Tavoyer : 
and when they were liberated, Dumoo chose to accompany 
the Tavoyer without any assignable reason, apparently with- 
out any end or aim. He thus wandered nearly two hun- 
dred miles still further from his friends and among strang- 
ers, as if led by a hand as unfelt as it was unseen. 

"These two men arrived in Tavoy at a time when the 
small-pox was raging with great violence anddestructiveness 
through the whole city and province of Tavoy. Dumoo came 
within a few yards of the mission premises. But he had no 
wish to see the missionaries ; he knew there were white 
men in Maulmain and Tavoy, but he had no special interest 
in them, but to avoid them. Wandering about in the city as 
he was, without any settled purpose, he was soon smitten by 
the fearful plague which was destroying so many victims 
around him. While enduring this disease he was sheltered 
in a Burmese kyoung or monastery. In this condition, 
hanging for a long time between life and death, his thoughts 
were turned within to the nature of the soul, and its pros- 
pects of misery or happiness after death, and this subject 
began to assume an overwhelming importance when he re- 
covered. He did not, however, seek the missionaries, but 
soon left the city for the jungles, wandering here and there 
among the heathen Karens in the province. Hence, though 
he had been a number of months among the Karens, he got 
no idea of the Christians or their books ; yet the desire for 
a book seemed to occupy and haunt his mind. He learnt 



238 DUMOO BECOMES A CHRISTIAN - . 

that a Karen who had set up claims to divine inspiration, 
had invented a method of writing the Karen language. He 
almost immediately made his -way to that person, and soon 
found that his ability to write was all a mere deception to 
gain credit and increase the number of his followers. Dumoo 
turned away from him with disappointment and disgust. He 
had gone quite across the province of Tavoy to the borders 
of Siam to see this wonderful pretender, but though he was 
disappointed in his object, his journey was not in vain. 
He fell in with two young men from the Karen theological 
school in Tavoy, who were spending their vacation in the 
jungle as Scripture readers, and endeavoring to exhort the 
people to repentance. As soon as Dumoo met these men 
with the New Testament which could be read, a book utter- 
ing by means of letters declarations concerning his soul 
and the Grod who made it, so exactly answering to the deep 
longings of his spirit, his inmost soul cried out, ' I have 
found what I want.' Nor did he separate himself from these 
young men, or give them rest till he learned from them the 
wonderful magic of the alphabet. 

" When these young men returned to their school, Dumoo 
repaired to a Christian village and attached himself to the 
native pastor, and showed a docility and earnestness which 
were regarded with astonishment by all who saw him. But 
his earnestness and fire were not only an earnestness and an 
inward burning to be able to read books in his own tongue, 
but the love of the Saviour and the power of the Holy Ghost 
seemed to have taken possession of him. He remained in 
the village trying to learn to read, and publishing to all 
around what a Saviour he had found. When the missionary 
made his pastoral visit to the village, he met Dumoo fore- 
most of the multitude and the heartiest to greet him, not 
with the cringing common to natives who have never seen a 



IIIS ANXIETY TO SAVE OTHEHS. 239 

European and expect attention from him, but with the up- 
right frankness of a Christian, in which distinctions of flesh 
and blood are lost in the stronger promptings of the soul. 
This man was baptized, and from that time he never ceased 
his efforts and entreaties. By his exhortations and repre- 
sentations he stirred up a missionary spirit in the mind of 
Quala and others in the province, and induced them to pledge 
themselves to return with him to his native country. He 
was sure the great multitude of the people would believe 
without hesitation and become Christians. And already, as 
if the result had become a reality in his own mind, he could 
not refrain from exhorting the people in these provinces to 
emulate the example of the Christians that would be in 
Toungoo. They would support their teachers, they would 
greedily and earnestly seize upon the book here so little 
prized by the disciples, etc. 

" Dumoo entered the theological school in Tavoy and spent 
the term of two years. He learned to write his own language, 
and acquired considerable knowledge of the Bible. But all 
his efforts and his enthusiasm had a single aim ; one burning 
desire seemed to possess him continua ! ly and everywhere. 
It was to go back and preach the gospel to his countrymen, 
and to induce others to go with him from this place. It was 
with him that Quala determined to go, for his spirit moved 
him more than the opposition and entreaties of all the disci- 
ples here. The churches could not spare him, and the oldest 
and most experienced missionaries then here thought the 
project chimerical and preposterous. 

" But, just at the right time, Quala and Dumoo with two 
others from this province started for Toungoo. Dr. Mason 
had preceded them a few weeks, an invalid destined soon to 
return to America. He was able to remain just long enough 
to receive Quala at Toungoo, and see him baptize two per- 



240 QUALA AND HE GO TO TOUNGOO. 

sons who had already been converted, and then leave the 
work in his hands. Quala and Dumoo, after meeting with 
many hindrances in Maulmain, finally succeeded in ascend- 
ing the river, but they separated before they reached Toun- 
goo. Quala proceeded to join Dr. Mason, and Dumoo turned 
to the south and east, and entering the Shwaygyeen district, 
began the work there. 

" This seems to be the history of the beginning of this 
great work. Grod chose his own instruments and his own wa y 
of leading them into the field which he had prepared for them. 
How wonderful, when the hand of God is revealed, are the 
seemingly insignificant events chosen in the distance, exact- 
ly timed in their occurrence, and unerringly connected and 
accumulated until a miracle of grace and of mercy is the 
result !" 

As soon as the war broke out in 1852, Quala would have 
proceeded to Toungoo immediately, but he was advised to 
wait until things assumed a more settled aspect. When, 
however, Dr. and Mrs. Mason were settled in Toungoo, Quala 
followed them. The churches in the southern provinces 
were very unwilling to let him go ; but it was in vain that 
they endeavored to detain him. A memorial signed by 
every assistant south of Tavoy, and by their churches, re- 
monstrating in affecting terms against the departure of one 
whose instructions were so much valued by them was pre- 
sented to the association. "What was to be done ?" writes 
the missionary, Mr. Thomas. " Here was a man who, under 
various circumstances, had been under the eye of the mis- 
sionaries from boyhood. He had been for a long time pastor 
of the most important church in his vicinity, and had fre- 
quently visited other churches in the missionaries' stead, to 
settle difficulties and administer the ordinances of the Lord's 
house ; and had never been guilty of anything requiring 



OBJECTIONS OF THE CHUKCHE3. 24:1 

discipline. This man for more than a year had desired to 
visit a distant region, a region never yet visited by a min- 
ister of the gospel, there to plant the standard of the cross. 
We looked at the subject carefully ; we spoke, we wept, we 
prayed ; and all the adverse memorialists rose with tears, 
and voted to approve his going." Dr. Mason also, in writing 
of what the Karen churches have done for the extension of 
Christ's kingdom, adds, " They have done more than give 
money. They have given men for mission work ; — not their 
youth to study and qualify themselves for becoming mission- 
aries, but their tried ministers ; not the mediocrity, but the 
most talented, best educated, most efficient, and most highly 
esteemed. When the churches of America send the most 
useful, most learned, and most valued in New England or 
New York, to Burinah, then they will have made a sacrifice 
equal to that which the churches of Tavoy and Mergui made 
when they gave Quala for .Toungoo." 

Accompanied by two assistants qualified to be common 
school teachers, Quala reached Toungoo in December, 1853. 
The first baptism took place in the following January. The 
ordinance was administered by Sau Quala, in the presence 
of more than fifty Burmans, whom he addressed in a most 
judicious and eloquent manner. The Colonel and one or 
two other pious officers of the 5th Regt. of N. I. were present, 
and were much gratified with the fearlessness, dignity, and 
propriety of demeanor exhibited by the administrator. Be- 
fore the close of the year the number of converts was seven 
hundred and forty-one, who were associated in nine churches. 
In May, 1856, they had increased to thirty churches, with 
an aggregate of two thousand one hundred and twenty -four 
members, all of whom had been baptized within two years, 
and more than two thousand of them by one man. 

Truly God had fulfilled Dr. Mason's desire to see Quala a 
11 



242 BIS MARVELLOUS SUCCESS. 

"useful minister while lie lived. " Mrs. Wade writing home 
in April, 1855, says of him ; " If our dear brother Mu on had 
done nothing else in Burmah besides training this Karen mis- 
sionary, he wonld have done a good work. But he could not 
thus have trained his pupil had he not travelled and 
preached year after year, building up churches, and disci- 
plining them according to the rules of the Bible. And be- 
sides this, Quala having assisted brother Mason so much in 
the translations, the word of God dwells richly in his mind, 
so that after being an excellent pastor and leading minister 
among these lovely southern churches, he has gone forth 
with our full confidence as a missionary ; has baptized — form- 
ed churches, superintending them with excessive labor and 
fatigue like an apostle. Having no salary, one and another 
of the disciples gives him a garment when he needs ; and 
having no home, he gets his food where he labors." 

How striking is this testimony to the simplicity of faith 
with which these noble men go foith to the help of the Lord 
against the mighty ! They remind us of the little fountains 
bubbling up in their own distant hills shining like silver 
threads in the thick jungle, and sparkling like diamonds in 
their healthful activity, impatient to bear their tribute of 
fresh waters, to swell the river which rolls beneath, and not 
only so, but rejoicing and blessing all whom they reach 
within their course. How unlike the pestilential inactivity 
of the stagnant pool, which settling itself down in its listless 
selfishness, neither rejoices man or beast, but spreads malaria 
all around ! Not so with the Karens ; they have no sooner 
tasted that the Lord is gracious, and learned that their high- 
est happiness is " to glorify Him and enjoy Him for ever," 
than they start forth into a new life of holy devotedness. 
Men and women, young and old, unite in the happy service 
of seeking to win souls to the knowledge of that Saviour 



HIS LABORS. 243 

whom to know is life eternal. Faith in Christ is their com- 
mencement, progress, and end. 

The following letter from Sau Quala will exhibit something 
of the spirit which animated him in his labors amongst this 
people. 

" Because God has showed me my work I rest not. I go 
up the mountains and down the valleys, hither and thither. 
One day in a place, one night in a place, continually. Still 
I know that I do the work of God imperfectly, and my heart 
is exceeding sad. Some come to me from a distance, and 
reprove me, saying, ' Teacher, thou say est thou hast come 
to exhort men, and thou hast not been to our stream, to our 
land. Dost thou not love us V Then I feel unable to open 
my mouth, for I know when the judgment-day arrives, that 
many who know not God will charge sin upon me, and I can 
only stammer. 

" Therefore, though my flesh be tolerably comfortable, I 
count that nothing. I desire that the Kingdom of God be 
established all over the land of Toungoo more than I can ex- 
press, and among the man-killers, far beyond words. Be- 
cause God has given evidence that He purposes to save them, 
my heart is sfrong, though my flesh is weak. Brethren — 
teachers — teacheresses, pray for me !" 

An instance of his disinterested spirit must be mentioned. 
The ' Taubeahs,' or ' wild Karens,' hearing of the teacher in 
Toungoo, were anxious to be allowed to come nearer, that 
they too might hear of the Eternal God ; and sent a petition 
to this effect, which was forwarded to Major Phayre, Com- 
missioner of Pegu. Major Phayre subsequently went up to 
Toungoo, and wished to induce Quala to be a medium of 
communication between these oppressed tribes and the 
Government, for which he would pay him twenty-five to thir- 
ty rupees a month. Sau Quala gave an account of his inter- 



244 OFFER OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOY. 

view with Major Phayre, when this office was offered to him. 
" The Commissioner arrived at Toungoo on the 9th March, 
and I went immediately to visit him. He shook hands with 
me, and asked me concerning the Bghais, Manniepghas and 
Pakus ; and in respect to their listening and becoming Chris- 
tians, and concerning all the unordained assistants ; finally he 
said, ' Teacher, I have spoken to the Government concerning 
you, and that you should become a head and overseer among 
the Bghais, Pakus and Wild Karens, for which you shall re- 
ceive thirty rupees a month.' I replied, ' Sir, I cannot do 
it. I will not have the money. I will not mix up God's 
work with Government work. There are others to do this 
thing. Employ them : as for me I will continue in the work 
in which I have been engaged.' The Commissioner asked : 
' Where do you obtain money to live on ? Why do you not 
like money % We will give money, and you may continue 
your work as teacher, as heretofore. Will it not make it eas- 
ier for you V I answered : ' No, Sir. When I eat with the 
children of poverty I am content (literally, ' my heart 
sleeps'). I did not leave my dear wife and come up hither in 
search of silver or agreeable food. I came to this land, 
that its poor benighted inhabitants might be saved. Be pa- 
tient with me, Sir. Were I to take your money the wild Ka- 
rens would turn against me.' He said to me again ; ' Well, 
teacher ! think of the matter a day or two.' So I left him, 
but I went to the Christian chief Kwailai and the Shan who 
had been baptized, and I persuaded them to take the office. 
The next day I visited the Commissioner again, and presented 
these two men, as willing to receive the appointment. He 
agreed to give them the office ; so I am free with clean hands. 
Teacheress and teacher, do not be anxious about me. I have 
no desire for this work, neither is my wife pleased with it. 
When I was in Tavoy and Mergui, and was urged to accept 



THE OFFER DECLINED. 245 

the office of Magistrate, she threw all the difficulties in the 
way she could ; but when I became a teacher, that pleased 
her (literally, 'hit her heart'). The Holy Scripture says : 
1 If a man desire the office of a bishop he desireth a good 
work;' why should I go back to things that are worthless ? 
May the Lord help me, draw me by the hand, and guide me 
to the things which are pleasing in his sight." 



216 SAU QUALA AND HIS ASSISTANTS. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

RECENT LABORS IN TOUNGOO. 

"He called the name of it Rehoboth ; and he said, For now the Lord 
hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land." — Gen. 
xxvi. 22. 

For two years Quala continued to labor, not even allowing 
himself the leisure to visit his wife and family, whom he 
had been obliged to leave at Tavoy. For a long time he had 
only three native assistants, Sau Papau whom he placed 
among the Sgaus, Sau Shapau among the Bghais, Sau Pwai- 
pan among the Pakus ; these were true " fellow-laborers," 
of whom he had no need to be ashamed. Amongst the Bghai 
tribe they soon had upwards of thirty stations, attended by 
seventeen native assistants, who were again superintended 
by Sau Quala, We have a very interesting notice of the 
appointment of six native preachers as missionaries, one es- 
pecially dedicated to assist Quala at Toungoo, at the quar- 
terly meeting of the Bassein Mission which took place in 
May, 1855, at Kau Nee, a Karen village on the bank of the 
river, about five miles above Bassein. Although the chapel 
had been greatly enlarged, it was impossible to accommodate 
all who came, and many of the number, who were estimated 
at upwards of twelve hundred, had to seat themselves on 
the ground outside ; these were principally the people of the 
village who with true Christian courtesy gave up the whole 
of the interior of the chapel to their guests. Thirty -nine 
native preachers were present on that occasion, besides 



OTHER MISSIONARIES. 24:7 

many of the younger men who had been engaged as mssion- 
aries and teachers. It was a beautiful sight to see so many 
gathered together in one bond of holy brotherhood, com- 
memorating the dying hour of Christ their Saviour. 

Six missionaries from amongst the number were appointed 
at that time : Sau Plomai for Toungoo. His wife seems to 
have been a person of uncommon energy and zeal, and soon 
after his settlement at Bauniu he sent for her. The follow- 
ing letter was written after she had joined him : " Originally 
I lived in the land of Bassein, and while there, I saw on the 
5th of last April, a company of Eangooners approaching me. 
They brought me a letter from my husband in Toungoo, who 
wrote that I must ' go up and join him,' for he said, ' Here 
is a place to work.' So I started with my mother, we two 
alone, till reaching Rangoon, when we were joined by ten 
others, men and women, and we all travelled together. At 
Shwaygyeen a part of our company left us taking boat to 
Toungoo ; but I kept on by land, and on the latter part of 
the journey we were left quite alone again. As soon as we 
arrived at my husband's village, the children all came around 
me, and I commenced at once to teach them to read. The 
children, however, learn with difficulty, and the women whom 
I try to instruct to the best of my ability do not under- 
stand much. Indeed 1 do not understand much m} T self, hav- 
ing studied but little. I am often very sorrowful when I 
think of my deficiencies both in explaining things to them, 
and in setting them an example. But I trust in God ; my 
confidence in Him never fails. To the extent of my ability 
I endure patiently, and labor in earnest with unceasing effort. 
Therefore, dear brethren and sisters, to whatever church 
you may belong, I entreat you to remember me in your 
prayers. But more than this, I desire that men and women 
everywhere, may offer united prayer, that the Kingdom of 



248 THEIR EARNEST SPIRIT. 

God may spread abroad and come before all other things 
quickly, throughout the whole earth." Such was the spirit 
manifested by the workers at Toungoo, and so greatly did 
the Lord bless their labors, that it was thought desirable 
that Mr. and Mrs. Whitaker should go up to aid and counsel 
them, at least till the return of Dr. and Mrs. Mason from 
America. Accordingly in May, 1855, they started. On 
reaching Shwaygyeen Mr. Whitaker found it impossible to 
take his family on at once to Toungoo ; he determined there- 
fore on leaving them with the mission family at Shwaygyeen, 
and proceeded by himself to Toungoo. There he was con- 
tinually surrounded with inquiring Karens, all eagerly anx- 
ious to see the teacher, and to facilitate his remaining among 
them. So effectually was their aid given v that in six days a 
house was made tenantable for the family. Quala, who had 
been out on a lengthened tour, arrived to see Mr. Whitaker, 
and gave a most encouraging account of the continued pro- 
gress of the work among the different tribes. Early there- 
fore, in September, Mr. Whitaker returned to Shwaygyeen 
for his family ; when he found both Mr. and Mrs. Harris 
prostrate with fever, and the mission plunged into the deep- 
est sorrow under the chastening hand of God. 

In a former chapter we have mentioned the first Mrs. 
Harris. After her death, Mr. Harris went to Rangoon to 
consult with the brethren there as to his future course. It 
was then arranged that Miss Vinton, who for fifteen years 
had been laboring amongst the Karens, and who needed rest, 
should go to America with his children, leaving Mr. Harris 
free to return to Shwaygyeen. In April 1855, Miss Vinton 
returned from America, and was married to Mr. Harris, and 
together they entered on their work with renewed earnest- 
ness and zeal. 

In vigorous health, with a perfect knowledge of the Ian- 



DEATH OF MRS. HARRIS. 249 

guage, loving the people, and with the most earnest desire 
for their salvation, she went out with her husband into the 
jungles, her favorite hymn expressing the desire of her 
heart. 

" Iu these deserts let me labor, 
On these mountains let me tell 
How he died, the blessed Saviour, 
To redeem a world from hell." 

So devoted were her labors, that her praise spread far and 
wide, and when at last she was taken from them, the Karens 
in the distant hills who had not yet seen her, said, " We cannot 
eat, we have no appetite for food, our friend is gone." 

When Mr. Whitakcr reached Shwaygyeen the fever was 
not severe, and from its intermittent character both she and 
Mr. Harris were at times able to move about. On the ninth 
day, she seemed no worse, and in the afternoon begged that 
the Karen children might sing their hymns to her. She her- 
self then sang a sweet hymn on rest, and after sleeping till 
about twelve at night, asked to be raised, and her head fall- 
ing on her husband's shoulder, she was gone without a strug- 
gle to be for ever with the Lord. 

It was an affecting sight to see those for whom she had so 
zealously labored, and in whose ears her words of gentle teach- 
ing had scarcely ceased to echo, called in to take their last 
long look of those beloved features, before they carried her 
forth to her last resting-place. Surely we may inscribe up- 
on this mission, " in deaths oft;" but it has been life also, 
life to the dead in trespasses and sins ; life, eternal life, to 
the many who have believed. 

Mr. Harris bravely struggled on for two long months, but 
disease was too strong for him. and at the close of 1856, he 
was compelled to seek a renewal of lost health and strength 
in America. We had the privilege of seeing him at that time, 

11* 



250 REMARKABLE PROGRESS AT TOUNGOO. 

weak in body, but strong in faith, counting all his sorrows 
light, if he might but win his beloved Karens to the excellen- 
cy of the knowledge of Christ Jesus his Lord. In speaking 
of those whom God had given him among from the heathen 
he said, " God is ahvays faithful to his promise, always. 
'There is no man that hath left parents, or brethren, or wife, 
or children, for the Kingdom of God's sake, who shall not re- 
ceive manifold more in this present time, and in the world 
to come life everlasting.' " Before Mr. Harris left Shway- 
gyeen eight hundred had been admitted into the Christian 
church by baptism. 

When Mr. and Mrs. Whitaker arrived at Toungoo, they 
were thronged with visitors ; at one time about two hundred 
were present for several successive days, all anxious to hear 
of Christ, and to receive instruction. The total number of 
baptisms in the province of Toungoo amounted at this time 
to two thousand six hundred. Among the numerous tribes 
east of the town, there appeared no opposition to the gospel, 
but on the contrary in all the villages there were those who 
listened, while the whole population was more or less brought 
under its life-giving influence. The number of people thus 
reached, could not be less than twenty thousand. We have 
many interesting notices, in one of Mr. Whitaker's tours in 
the jungle, of their earnestness in prayer, and thirst for the 
knowledge of God's word, their love of holiness, and zeal for 
the ordinances of God's house. How great the change effect- 
ed in a few short months ! Then nothing but the sound of 
savage strife was heard in these villages and on those hills, 
but now peace reigns wherever the blessed gospel has found 
its way. In some of the villages the people possessed rare 
gems, which had come down to them from their ancestors, and 
which they regarded with superstitious reverence. But on 
bringing them to Mr. Whitaker for inspection they asked ; 



EARNESTNESS OF THE PEOPLE. 251 

" shall we throw them away;" evidently willing to do so, had 
it been considered right. Some of the chapels they had bnilt 
were so large and commodious that they would hold from four 
to six hundred people, and these were filled to overflowing. 
At the association meeting which Mr. Whitaker held with 
them in the 1st January, 1857, upwards of sixteen hundred 
were present, many earnest applications were made for school 
teachers, and there was a universal readiness on the part of 
the preachers to rely on God and their people for support. 

Mr. Whitaker gives an interesting account of a Sabbath 
spent at Wathaukho, where Pwaipau began his labors among 
the Klenla people. When Pwaipau first -went amongst them, 
he found only one man willing to hear him. After faithfully 
preaching to him he was abcut to turn away, but the man 
earnestly entreated, saying that if no one else would listen 
he would, and that he would learn to read the book. Pwaipau 
sat down to teach him, and in a fortnight he had a school of 
forty boys. All went on well until the father of two of the 
lads sent to call them home to the celebration of a feast to 
an evil spirit. The boys stoutly refused to go, and the next 
day the school house was surrounded with thirty or forty 
men armed with spears. One of the boys leaped out at the 
back of the house and concealed himself in the jungle, the 
other was secured, and ordered off to the ceremony on pain 
of death. He of course obeyed, but light had entered, and 
soon that first learner was the assistant in charge of a church 
of two hundred members four or five miles in extent. 
Pwaipau watched over another flock still more numerous ; 
the two number nearly five hundred. Peaceful and happy 
they dwell under the shadow of the Almighty. May his 
banner over them be love. 

Well might Mr. Whitaker " thank God that he had been 
permitted to spend four years on heathen ground, and for 



252 

the miracles of grace and power he had been permitted to 
witness." His hands were full of labor, and his heart buoy- 
ant with hope that the fulfilment of God's richest promises 
was at hand, but in the midst of labor and of hope the hand 
of death was upon him, and after a brief illness he entered 
into rest in August, 1857. 

It was at the close of 1856 that Dr. and Mrs. Mason re- 
turned from America. On reaching Calcutta there was some 
difficulty in obtaining a passage on to Burmah for the whole 
party, and Dr. Mason determined therefore to proceed alone, 
leaving Mrs. Mason and the children to follow him as speed- 
ily as possible. After an absence of three years Dr. Mason 
reached Toungoo in January, 1857, and was welcomed by 
the Karens with the most fervent joy. Finding the elephant 
upon which he travelled moved but slowly, they made a palan- 
keen of bamboos, and placing him upon their shoulders they 
bore him on from village to village, through the Manniepgha 
hamlets to the Paku settlements and on to the Bghai moun- 
tains. His course was like the triumphant procession of one 
whom the Lord had blessed. He says :— 

" I left Shwaygyeen for Toungoo by land with two ele- 
phants, and reached the borders of the province on the 2nd 
of January. When the Christians heard of my arrival, 
twenty men started to meet me and cut a road for my ele- 
phants, the bamboo scuff being quite impassable. In the 
interior I had taken the road to another village, the inhabit- 
ants of the village connected with Shwaygyeen having volun- 
teered their services to prepare the way before me ; while 
the chief and his followers of a third village were busied 
at the same time in clearing a path for me to their hamlet. 
Missing both these parties I proceeded onward to the village 
of Khupghai. The road being exceedingly difficult and the 
mountains so steep that places for the feet of the elephants 



JUNGLE TRAVELLING. 253 

to step in had sometimes to be dug in their sides, and gorges 
so narrow that the animals could scarcely turn aside and 
pick a practicable track among the rocks with which they 
were filled, it was not until the morning of the third day we 
reached our destination. The first night I slept on the top 
of a paddy crib in an old field, a thousand feet above the 
plains seen in the distance ; and darkness overtook us on the 
evening of the second day, when the natives proposed to en-' 
camp out again, but having no tent, and the north wind at 
this season blowing very keenly over the hills, I refused — 
determined to go to the village if we travelled till midnight ; 
so on we went, up and down, with a beautiful moon peeping 
now and then through trees. We were in a deep dell, when 
the path required us to ascend a precipitous mountain side 
but on turning the heads of our elephants through weariness 
they positively refused to go, and when goaded by their 
drivers they made the forest resound with their bellowing, 
but not a foot onward would they stir. For once I had* to 
acknowledge myself fairly beaten, and the next best thing 
to be done was to find the nearest dry spot on which we could 
spread ourselves down ; for in these glens the ground is 
frequently very wet. After retracing our steps a few hun- 
dred yards I called to a man on foot, to feel if the ground 
was dry in the green palm grove through which we were 
passing ; when my attention was arrested by the figure of a 
stranger in the shade. He announced himself a Christian, 
and urged us to come and spend the night at his house which 
was about a quarter of a mile from the road, on a little hill 
with a gentle ascent, the only difficulty in the way, a deep 
stream, he said he could overcome by leading us to a prac- 
ticable ford. It appeared that he heard the tinkling of the 
bells that hung to the necks of the elephants, and the report 
having reached him that I was somewhere in the jungles, 



25i CHRISTIAN HOSPITALITY. 

he came down with his son after us to see if it were not the 
teacher. His hospitable mansion was reached about ten 
o'clock, where the most comfortable place in it was spread 
with mats for my reception. When we had dined (for we 
had not stopped before from early dawn) I announced pray- 
ers, and the only daughter of my host, a pretty girl of six- 
teen, brought forward a New Testament and hymn book, 
joining with her sweet voice in the praises of God. Taney 
my emotions ! Three years ago not a soul in these jungles 
had heard of the Saviour, when it was my privilege to be 
first to proclaim His precious name. Now, the first house I 
am led to enter, in the field of my charge, is furnished with 
a family Bible and hymn book, whose owners prize them as 
precious treasure. Surely ' it is the Lord's doing, and is 
wonderful in our eyes.' 

" Before we could reach Khupghainext morning, the news 
had reached the village that the teacher had come ; and the 
hill sides were covered with men, women and children who 
had come out to meet him, each anxious to seize his hand 
before he could descend from the elephant. In one corner 
of their very neat meeting house was a place matted off for 
my sleeping room, and curtained all around with new Bur- 
mese silk, such as the wealthier Karens wear for their best 
dresses. My Karen guide wore a lower garment for which 
he paid twenty-five rupees, and above it a Shan jacket of 
considerable value. The native preacher here I found well 
provided for by the church, without requiring aid from any 
other sources. 

" The next evening found me at Kholu, in the midst of 
some of the grandest alpine scenery I ever gazed on. Tt 
stands on the mountain side, one or two thousand feet above 
Yan Creek at the base ; and looking across the valley, moun- 
tains are seen piled on mountains as far as the eye can reach i 



DR. MASON'S PASTORAL VISITATION. 255 

with forms as varied as the pictures of the kaleidoscope. 
On the mountain range where I stood, which bounds the 
valley on the south, are six Christian villages, and on the 
northern range are no less than fifteen. When I look around 
me I find myself in a Christian country, raised up as if by 
magic from the darkness of heathenism in three brief years. 
" The next day, after travelling a few miles, a difficulty arose 
as to which village I should go to, the road dividing into two, 
and the path had been cleared for my elephants to both. I 
found no way to decide the matter, but to declare that Quala's 
wife was my daughter, and that I must go and see my daugh- 
ter. Twenty-five years ago she was Mrs. Mason's favorite 
pupil, — so on we went to the village of Lenkla, where Quala 
makes his home. At present he is away preaching the gos- 
pel to the Red Karens, seven days' journey north-east of 
Toungoo. 

"When the Sabbath was over, the chief of this village came 
to me and asked how many nights I had slept at Lenkla, I 
told him two ; ' Then,' he said, ' you must come and sleep at 
least two in my village. I spent a Sunday in your house in 
Toungoo, and there first heard the gospel from your lips. I 
want too, so much to see the teacheress. Will she not come 
on to the mountains to see us ? My wife and I will go to the 
city to visit her, so soon as we hear of her arrival.' In reply 
to his invitation to come to his village, I told him I had dis- 
missed my elephants, the time for which I engaged them hav- 
ing expired, and that I was unable to walk so far. 'We do 
not want you to walk,' he continued, ' we will carry you and 
all your things, if you will say, Go.' I gave the word, and he 
turned to a man at his elbow saying, ' Make a dooly for the 
teacher and bring twenty men to carry his things.' In a few 
hours a very comfortable affair was constructed of bamboo, 
on which my bed and myself were put, and borne by four 



256 HIS TOUR AMONG THE MOUNTAINS. 

men, relieved at short intervals by four more, a dozen being 
in attendance, away I went at a trot over several hills and 
valleys to this village, which stands on the very top of a moun- 
tain spur, with the whole plain of Toungoo to the Prome moun- 
tains spread out on the west, and the magnificent scenery of 
the Bghai mountains on the north, with the tortuous course of 
the stream on which our most interesting Bghai villages are 
located, distinctly visible by the deep chasms through which it 
runs. 

' I am now among the Manniepghas, and at every village I 
find more or less applicants for baptism, but I reserve statis- 
tics for another letter This illustrates the gratitude of the 
Karens to their teachers for bringing them the gospel. 

"I have got the Sermon on the Mount into Bghai, a third 
of Matthew, and Genesis begun. I have now to request the 
patronage of the Society for an edition of three thousand cop- 
ies of Genesis, and as many of the Sermon on the Mount.* # * 

" The evening your letter arrived I found a little Bghai 
boy, not a dozen years of age, reading by the way, an old 
smoked catechism in Sgau, which, to preserve, he had sewed 
between two bits of old Burmese pasteboard on a kind of 
spring back of a bamboo splint. I send it to ask if such a 
people who will take such care of books, not a tithe of which 
they can understand, shall be denied the Scriptures. 
"Would that you could stand with me on these mountain 
tops, and see now two, now three, and then five other clusters 
of Christian habitations. You would then feel that ' the half 
was not told.' The duty of giving a full support to their 
teachers the churches fully recognise, and, though it often 
requires much self-denial on the part of the assistant in places 
where the people are few and poor, yet they are ready to 
admit that they ought to look for their means to live to their 
congregations. Still, in the present incipient state of things, 



SUPPORT OF THE TEACHERS. 257 

We ought to assist those who need help, as many do. One 
young man, who has a wife to support, told me that the ' Wild 
Bghais,' among whom he is located, could give him nothing 
but rice, for it is all they have for themselves. Many wear 
scarcely any clothing, and are at constant warfare among them- 
selves and have to be ever prepared for attacks from their 
neighbors. Yet in the hearts of these people the Spirit of 
God is manifestly at work, though none have been baptized, 
and they come to meeting on Sundays in great numbers, 
armed — like the old covenanters — with swords, spears and 
cross-bows ; muskets they have none. To supply his necessi- 
ties, the young man above-mentioned has repeatedly come 
down into the plains, and labored as a cooly. In such instan- 
ces, and there are others, the missionary should be able to step 
«in with the necessary funds and keep the man at work." 

The following account of a meeting on the Bghai mount- 
ains is very striking : he says ; 

" Like the prophet in his vision, I feel overwhelmed with 
the scenes that are passing before my eyes. Three days ago, 
the first meeting of the Bghai association was held in this 
place. I was called to the chair, and as I looked from the 
crest of the hill on which it assembled, on two thousand of the 
wildest Karens the jungles can boast, I seemed to be seated 
in an assembly of all nations. There were men robed in 
silks in the Burmese costume ; others with the blue pants 
and padded jackets which distinguish Shans ; and a few were 
buttoned up in the cast off red coats of English soldiers. 
Among the ladies, there was a sufficient variety of silk hand- 
kerchiefs, white cottons, and diversified calicoes to supply a 
small linendraper's shop ; but the larger number were in their 
native dresses. The Pakus were known by the horizontal 
stripes on their tunics. One Bghai tribe was easily recog- 
nised by the tunic being striped perpendicularly with red 



258 NUMBER OF THE CONVERTS. 

lines, and the other by their short pants reaching half way 
down the thigh. Many of those from the distant mountains 
had their swords by their sides, and not a few might be seen 
on the distant margin of the congregation listening as they 
leaned on their spears. 

" Forty -five stations were represented, each of which has 
its teacher, and all, with a very few exceptions, are natives 
of Toungoo, raised up from among themselves. At twenty- 
four of the stations, the foundations of churches have .been 
laid, and there are many candidates for baptism at most of 
the stations. Three hundred and sixteen persons were bap- 
tized during the year, making the present number of church 
members in good standing among the Bghais alone, (there is 
a still larger number of Palms and Manniepghas) — one thou- 
sand two hundred and sixteen. The aggregate of the pupils* 
reported in school is six hundred and eighty-eight. In the 
Paku and Manniepgha districts there is a still larger num- 
ber, there being exactly fifty stations. Thus there are nine- 
ty-five schools, and as many school teachers and preachers to 
the extent of their knowledge in eastern Toungoo, all, with 
the exception of about ten, natives of the province and con- 
verted within the last three years. This is the most remark- 
able feature of this most remarkable work. These young 
preachers exhibited in the discussion of questions brought 
before the association, forensic talents which I have never 
seen equalled in the best educated of our native assistants, 
and which it would be difficult to surpass in our schools at 
home. When I told Quala at parting, to thrust into the work 
every promising young man instructed by himself or his 
three associates, without waiting for them to take a regular 
course of education, I little thought to witness such glorious 
results. When the work became too great for one man, 
Shapau took the lead among the Bghais, providing teachers 



ABILITY OF THE PREACHERS. 259 

from among his pupils for that tribe, and Pwaipau among the 
Pakus. Both, as well as Quala, are in fact bishops, and no 
bishops ever acted more judiciously, more uprightly, or 
more successfully than they have done during the last three 
years. 

" Were the plan of bringing forward the natives to places 
of responsibility followed out, we should soon have a band 
of missionaries raised up on the ground, to go to the regions 
beyond, with tenfold better qualifications for their mission 
than all the universities can give their students, and at little 
or no expense. Is it to be done ? Or are native preachers, 
whose labors Grod blessed beyond example in the history 
of missions, to be kept in everlasting pupilage, and made 
nonentities in the eyes of their fellow countrymen ? 

" The raising up of such a body of assistants is, I think, 
unequalled in the history of missions, and scarcely less re- 
markable is the fact that all the congregations come forward 
and engage to support their teachers ; and at every station 
which I have visited, I find the assistant better clothed and 
in a better house than any of his congregation. Several of 
the churches gave their teachers twenty rupees in money 
last year, and one gave thirty. Added to this, they have 
paid into the mission about a thousand rupees for books ; a 
larger sum than has ever been contributed for books, I 
imagine, from all the rest of the missions during the quarter 
of a century they have been in existence. Medicines which 
were always given away, I believe, at the expense of the 
mission till I commenced selling them to the Karens of Ta- 
voy, meet with a ready market here, affording the dealer a 
clear profit of twenty-five per cent. Finally, they have con- 
tributed for the Home Mission Society a fraction over two 
hundred and eighty-one rupees, which with two hundred and 
eighty-three rupees contributed by the Paku and Manniepgha 



260 LTBEEALTTY OF THE CHURCHES. 

churches, and more than two hundred of balance on hand, 
will, after paying for the printing of the minutes, be devoted 
to Mr. Whitaker's school during the rains in town ; and the 
amount is larger than will be necessary to expend. 

" I had written thus far when I arose for an evening walk. 
On the edge of the village I came upon four little girls with 
sparkling eyes looking from dirty faces, like morning stars 
peeping through clouds. The eldest was not seven years of 
age, the youngest about five. One of them had two torn 
leaves of an old hymn book in her hand. After winning 
them out of their bashfulness, I found all could read ; and 
they finally sung one of the hymns through to a good Eng- 
lish tune, as accurately and as harmoniously as I ever heard 
little girls of their age sing anywhere. Truly God's ways 
are wonderful, and He puts to shame the wisdom and works 
of man. Here is a professedly Christian population of more 
than ten thousand souls, upwards of two thousand of whom 
are members of Christian churches ; schools in ninety-five 
villages, with praise proceeding from the lips of babes, in 
tunes with which our mothers sung to us cradle hymns ; in- 
digenous teachers in almost every village, using books that 
they have purchased ; and to enable a few to obtain a better 
education than the jungles can afford, ample funds are pro- 
vided to support a school in the city : all this, and more, in 
three years through native agents, who from the foundation 
of the mission to the present time have not received in the 
aggregate two hundred rupees. Where shall we look for a 
parallel in the history of missions ? But the work has only 
just begun. These young Bghai preachers are going to form 
a phalanx of missionaries to evangelise the other wild tribes 
in the ' regions beyond,' as far as the Hohangho and Brainah- 
pootra. These men will be better qualified, with a little in- 



MARVELLOUS PROGRESS. 261 

struction, for their work than it is possible to qualify white 
men in all the colleges throughout Christendom. 

" You recollect St. Anthony's chapel, of course. Well, 
my Bghai hermitage occupies a very similar position. I am 
on the top of a hill, with a precipitous mountain behind me, 
like Arthur's seat, but much higher. On one side of this 
mountain is a deep gorge with a steep ascent, precisely like 
Victoria Road. In the other direction, looking down as it 
were to Edinburgh, is a rapid stream running through a 
deep glen, bordered by precipices higher than that on which 
Edinburgh castle stands ; and in the far distance are lofty 
mountains as seen beyond the Forth. 

" The country is not more Scotch than are its inhabitants. 
The Bghais are as like the Highlanders of olden time as 
can well be imagined. They are divided into small clans 
that have been so separated by old feuds, that a mountain 
ridge between them could not be crossed by either party. 
If a man was found on the grounds of his neighbors his life 
was the price of his temerity. The people were ever in a 
state of apprehension, for one clan or another was constantly 
making forays into the weaker or less prepared villages. 

" The young man who is writing by my side lost a sister 
several years ago by a party of Pant Bghais who attacked 
the village, killed and wounded several persons, and carried 
away some half a dozen captives, who were probably sold 
into slavery to the Shans, or some other tribe to the 
eastward. Quala tells me that he saw a number of slaves 
among the Red Karens who had been captured in this region, 
but they were well treated, had become domesticated with 
their masters, and manifested no wish to return to their na- 
tive land. Christianity will put a termination to this state 
of things, but Government cannot. This young-man's family 
cherished the purpose to. attack the Pant Bghais whenever 



262 ANCIENT FEUDS. 

a favorable opportunity occurred, and obtain a substitute 
for his sister but when they embraced Christianity the 
avenging design was, they say, abandoned for ever. Beyond 
the Christian settlements, notwithstanding the English 
power, kidnapping, killing, and plundering, are going on 
while I am writing. There seems from the physiognomy of 
the people to be a great difference in the character of the 
Bghais. A party of thirty from a distant village stopped 
here a few days lately, and some of them had certainly as 
brutal countenances as my eyes ever rested on. Others 
again appear to have mild dispositions. The young man who 
is school teacher appears to me, after a two months' intimate 
acquaintance, to be a very amiable youth. Some are very 
stupid, and some appear remarkably intelligent. A few 
Sundays ago I had the teacher of a neighboring village to 
preach for me in the evening. I sat and listened to him 
with admiration and astonishment. I recollected him as one 
of the young men who came to Mrs. Mason's school in the 
city. He was then anxious to learn, but the Burmese, who 
did all in their power to keep the Karens from our house, 
spared no efforts when they did come to frighten them away 
again, and succeeded by their tales of terror in driving him 
away after he had been about a week with us ; but when 
Shapau came out here he went to his school, and stayed with 
him a month. Here then is the amount of his education, six 
days in the city and thirty in the jungles ; yet he certainly 
preached as good a sermon in every respect as you will hear 
from one half of our ministers who have been three years 
to college and three to the theological seminary. His text 
was, - As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, 
&c.' In the introduction he gave as accurate an account of 
the circumstances under which the serpent was made, as it 
would be possible for the most experienced theologian to 



THE INDEPENDENT BGHAIS. 263 

furnish, with the necessity of looking on it to live ; and 
applied it to Christ with an earnestness and animation that 
wculd have secured the attention of any audience. He is 
very anxious to have me supply his place and allow him to 
go to school. He is just the kind we wish to have instructed, 
but we cannot spare him from the field. Shapau placed him 
at ona village where he taught for a couple of years nearly, 
when more than forty of his congregation were baptized. 
Shapau then removed him to a frontier settlement where 
thirty -five are now requesting admittance into the church. 
But such men are few everywhere. We need to pray for 
more laborers, and for the right kind of laborers." 

Again on the 8th April, 18>7, Dr. Mason writes from ' In- 
dependent Bghal-dom :' — " The people here are the Pant- 
wearing Bghais, who boast that they never paid taxes to any 
Government, but have maintained their independence from 
time immemorial. The Burmese denominate them Loo- 
Yaing or ' wild men,' and not without reason. Though only 
one short march from the villages of the Frock-wearing 
Bghais, from whom a large revenue was collected, this 
people never allowed a Burman to return if he once appeared 
amongst them. Though many thousands of them are nom- 
inally under the English Government, no taxes have yet 
been asked of them ; and they now show themselves boldly 
in the city to purchase salt and a few other articles. As 
they become Christianised we may expect they will be taxed, 
which will not make Christianity popular. As I am the 
first white man that has ever been to their village, I may 
not improbably, when they come to be taxed, have my name 
handed down to posterity as a spy of the English Govern- 
ment. However, I came here by their own invitation, and 
they carried me en their shoulders all the way. 

14 This is the most north-easternmost point to which the 



264: BOEDER TEIBES. 

conquests of Christianity have reached. Here light and dark 
ness meet. None of the villagers have been baptized, but 
a list of thirty-two applicants for the ordinance has been 
brought in, and I have an assembly of two or three hundred 
every evening at worship who are all professed believers in 
Christ. But it is astonishing to find how stupid the old peo- 
ple are on all subjects, while the young appear as bright and 
intelligent as European children. Would we rouse the peo- 
ple we must educate the young ; there is no other way. The 
old may obtain grace to save their souls, but never know- 
ledge and intelligence to give them a place among civilized 
nations. 

" This is only one of three villages in which there are pro- 
fessors of Christianity, in the same little valley, and all are 
visible from the top of the hill that overshadows us. My 
present locality is the very antipodes to the one I last wrote 
from. The village is down in a little basin on the banks of 
a stream, completely encircled by high hills which shut out 
everything but the sun. The thermometer rises seven de- 
grees higher here than where I last sojourned. 

" The work accomplished in Toungoo appears great on pa- 
per, but when I take my stand on one of those hills, and the 
eye sweeps round from the northwest to the southeast on an 
unbroken mass of heathenism lying at my feet, and on, on, 
on, till the imagination is lost in the darkness, I sink para- 
lysed at the view of the * much land which yet remains to be 
possessed.' Still these uttermost parts of the earth have been 
promised by One who never fails to fulfil His promises. 
Promised, however, on the condition that they shall be asked 
for ; and we have reason to inquire, Has the condition been 
fulfilled ? 

"The season for itinerating is close upon us, and through- 
out the rains the natives will be confined to their stations 



shapau's SUCCESS. 265 

and their schools, with the exception of short excursions in- 
to the neighboring villages. Quala has made one valuable 
trip this year among the Red Karens, but valuable mainly 
for the knowledge he brings us of the people, for he failed to 
find a single individual who gave any attention to the gospel. 
But one great obstacle was, he could not speak their lan- 
guage, and had to converse with them through a Shan who 
was inimical to Christianity. Shapau, our next best assist- 
ant, has made a more successful tour on and over the east- 
ern mountains in the southern part of the province, and be- 
fore his return he saw six zayats built in as many different 
villages, settled six teachers in them and thus laid the foun- 
dation of as many Christian communities, where the worship 
of God was not before known. One of the villages that re- 
ceived a teacher promising him his support and engaging to 
obey the precepts of the gospel, is on the eastern side of 
the dividing chain of mountains, and is the first village that 
has received Christianity beyond the English territories. ** 

" Shapau has made one trip among the Pant-wearing 
Bghais in the northern portion of the province. While 
absent he wrote me : ' I have reached the land of Kannee, 
and several of the villages are about to build zayats. I in- 
tend to go as far as the village of Koo-oo ; I hear many of 
the villages in that region are about to erect chapels. 
Should I remain here till the zayats are completed I shall 
be delayed a considerable time. I have a number of people 
with me, and shall leave a teacher in each village that pre- 
pares for his accommodation. Teacher, pray for us.' Since 
he wrote the above, a body of wild Bghais from the north at- 
tacked the village of Koo-oo, to which Shapau was bound, 
killing three men, and carrying off seven persons into sla- 
very." 

In June, 1857, Mrs. Mason reached Toungoo, and again 

12 



266 MRS. MASON AT TOCNGOO. 

commenced her work amongst these people. In writing of 
her first impressions on her return, she says : " Three years 
and a half ago I gazed over these mountains and plains 
where the fallen angels have held supreme power ever since 
the days of Noah, wondering if there were any of the chosen 
among them. Now our missionary boat-man Shapau stands 
beside me, pointing to the north, south, east and west, and 
says, ' Teacher, among these hills and valleys are ninety-six 
churches, chapels, and schools.' Three years ago I looked 
upon troop after troop of wild mountaineers with their short- 
striped growns and unwashed faces, wondering if they could 
be civilized. Now I look upon a hundred young men and 
lads, all neatly dressed in clean new gowns and blue pant- 
aloons, with their hair nicely braided under tasteful tur 
bans. 

" Three years ago I sent to them the first book they 
ever saw in their own tongue ; yesterday I sat in the midst of 
twenty young preachers, fine intelligent youth, all following 
the speaker, with open Bibles, turning from page to page, 
from paragraph to paragraph, with perfect ease and the deep- 
est interest. I could not but exclaim, ' What hath God 
wrought !' Several of the preachers say their hearts are to 
go beyond the frontier to carry the gospel. May God streng- 
then their holy purpose." 

Mrs. Mason went up to Toungoo with the hope and deter- 
mination of being able to establish a self supporting female 
normal school, for the training of young teachers for the village 
school. She felt there would be many difficulties and ob- 
stacles in the way, but she went forward strong in faith, 
believing that God would prosper and bless the work. Some 
of the chiefs having heard of her design, three girls were sent 
in, but nothing was said as to their support. The crisis had 
come, but how to meet it was the difficulty. If the girls were 



THE NORMAL SCHOOL FOUNDED. 267 

56«*t home, Mrs. Mason felt sure no more would come ; to 
support them herself was neither possible nor desirable. 
Her heart was lifted up for guidance to Him who giveih 
wisdom liberally and upbraideth not. That evening a man 
came in who was not at first recognised, but who proved to 
be the very man who had formerly come back with the little 
book, " The sayings of the elders." He was now a Christ- 
ian, and was private agent to the Commissioner, and one of 
the most influential men of the jungles. After cordial greet- 
ings Ms. Mason, amons-st other things, mentioned her plaQ 
for the school, her hope of obtaining a grant of land from 
Government, of erecting a school-house, chapel and teachers' 
dwellings, all of which was to be made over in trust for the 
Karens. He seemed to see at once the advantage of such 
an establishment ; the desirableness of instructing the wo- 
men, of making them the teachers, and of sending off the 
young men as preachers among the heathen. He urged Mrs 
Mason to secure a tract of land on the eastern side of the 
river, so that when the Karens came down from the mount- 
ains they might there find a resting-place. The Commis- 
sioner had entered most kindly into Mrs. Mason's wishes, 
and had been over every part of the city and its environs, 
which is on the western side of the river, looking for an 
eligible site, but in vain ; and when Mrs. Mason found that 
the Nah-Khan's advice was to settle on the eastern side, 
although removed from all civilization and surrounded by 
jungle, she determined, if possible, to do so, in the hope that 
some of the Karens might be induced to come and settle 
round her. Before leaving, the Nah-Khan inquired how the 
institution, &c, was to be supported. When Mrs. Mason 
replied that she trusted in God, whose ravens were still upon 
the earth, he understood her, and with a sympathising glance 
said in an under tone to those who stood by, " I must send 



268 ITS PLAN. 

the mamma my great pig !" And in a few days after down 
came the great pig, and eleven rupees for the girls' sup- 
port. 

Thus a beginning was made, and that by a chief of consid- 
erable influence, who assured Mrs. Mason that the people 
Would send their daughters and provide for them. Shapau 
also entered warmly into the scheme ; and although at a most 
unhealthy season, went out to make it known in the jungles : 
in a short time Mrs. Mason had twenty Karens and two Bur- 
mese girls, from thirteen to sixteen years of age, gathered 
into the school. Letters, too, came pouring in from, the differ- 
ent villages, expressive of their hearts' good will and desire 
to support the institution. Some of these letters are very 
characteristic ; we give the following as specimens. 

" Letter of the Ta-wa -la-khe-ites. — Teacheress ; Formerly 
we knew not God's word. Not one of us knew what was 
right : we saw nothing but transgression. Hence God had 
mercy on us and sent us books; but although he had sent us 
books we knew not of them, — not a single man of us. "While 
we were in this state of ignorance, according to the command 
of God, teacher and teacheress Mason came to us children of 
sin. We heard as the teacher preached to us. We believed, 
and rejoiced exceedingly. Now, as we are unable to devise 
for ourselves, the teacheress has devised for us to erect a large 
school-building, which we approve, all and each of us. 
Teacheress, as you have ordered for us we will do and study." 

There is another from the Mopghas. 

"Letter of the Pelekhe-ites — Teacheress; Your erection 
of a large zayat for the Karens hits our hearts exceedingly, 
exceeding greatly. We will send our children and grand- 
children to study, and we will most assuredly furnish their 
food. The teacheress building a large school-house harmon- 
izes perfectly with our own minds, and we will moreover as- 



LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE. 269 

sist the teacheress. It is our heart's desire to "become skill- 
ed in the books, and we will study till we are skilled in them, 
both male and female, and become teachers of God's word. 

" We give our word of honor for that to which we here 
agree. We are also pleased with the Committee of seven. 

" May great grace and peace rest upon the teachers. 

" Mercy, love, and peace abide with the teacheress for 
ever!" 

Another wrote : 

" Dear teacheress ; Formerly all of us in Toungoo were 
under the dominion of Satan ; we drank arrack, cursed, re- 
viled, told lies, fought and devoured one another, until no one 
dared to go to a neighbor's house. We hated and dreaded 
each other. Now behold the change : we love one another 1 

" Two years ago I heard of the Eternal God's command?, 
and of Jesus Christ our Redeemer. I believed and worship- 
ped with my whole heart, and according to the command, I 
have ever since preached Christ to my countrymen according 
to my ability. I try much, but very imperfectly. 

" When I heard of your work for the Karens I rejoiced 
with great joy. If God and the white foreigners had not 
pitied us, we must have remained in darkness and sin, for 
we were full of all unrighteousness. 

" Now we have heard, and we have learned a little with 
delight. 

" Now the teacheress is building a great house and a holy 
city, that the young women may increase in understanding, 
and God's kingdom be extended. For this I rejoice much, 
much, much ! 

" Formerly we looked for a deliverer but none came. 
Now God has sent to us, therefore our hearts are very hot, 
and we are determined to study with all our might. 



270 LETTERS FTiOM THE PEOPLE. 

" Because formerly we worked hard in wickedness, now 
we ought to work the harder to do good. 

" We send five men to help build the girls' rooms, and 
when they leave, others will take their place. They will 
buy their own food. 

" Dear teacheress, I never saw you, but I beg you will 
pray for me, and remember the little church which sends 
this letter. 

" Janquate." 

This is a literal translation, word for word. The young 
teacher who wrote this letter had no instruction but such as 
he had obtained in the jungles. 

Nothing could have been more favorable than this com- 
mencement ; and probably since the sending forth of the 
little tract, no work had awakened such aglow of enthusiasm 
in these Toungoo jungles. Thirty-two acres and a half of 
land were made over by the Commissioner to the institution. 
And the next work was to clear, and drain, and build. 
Fifty Karens came in at once to offer a willing service, and 
the work was at once commenced. In addition to land, Major 
Phayre gave orders for a supply of teak, free of charge. 
The rains had now set in, and it was impossible to do any- 
thing in the jungle. Dr. Mason was at work with a transla- 
tion of the Scriptures into Bghai, and in June, 1857, 
wrote : — 

" The rains are pouring down upon us, and all travelling 
is nearly closed till the fair weather comes again. I regret 
that we have so few men at our outpost, for it is hard work. 
One wrote me that the village where he was teaching was 
enfiladed by an uninterrupted series of traps, so that no one 
could enter after dark without being speared. The village, 
like most of the Bghai villages, consists of one house with a 
hall in the centre, and the only way of access at any time is 



LAWLESSNESS OF THE TRIBES. 271 

by a ladder let down from the centre of the hall, which is 
taken up at night and the trap-door let down. Thus the 
people live in constant fear of attack from their enemies. 
Some of the inhabitants of another village had killed two 
Burmans. Two of the murderers were brought to town 
through the efforts of some of the Christians, where they 
died in jail before trial, if I recollect right, since my arrival. 
Eecently a part of this village went out to revenge the death 
of the men that died in prison, and the first object of their 
vengeance was the daughter of a Christian chief, whom they 
speared to death on the banks of the brook where she had 
gone to draw water. One young teacher had to run away 
from the village where he was located with half the inhabit- 
ants intoxicated after him, because they said they would kill 
every man that forbade them drink. 

" After allowing for much chaff, God has still done a won- 
derful work here in taming so many of the wild men around 
us ; but unless He continue to work, ' the watchman waketh 
in vain.' All our efforts, all our machinery, is naught.'' 

In this letter was enclosed the following translation of a 
letter from Sau Quala. 

" I have received the affectionate letter which you wrote 
me, and I rejoice exceedingly with much thankfulness. We 
Karens, wild and ignorant sons of the forest, are not worthy 
of anything from your hands, for we have been a rejected 
people from days of old. When we fell among Talaings, the 
Takings persecuted us ; when we fell among Shans, the 
Shans persecuted us ; when we fell among Burmans, the 
Burmans persecuted us ; father and mother, grandfather and 
grandmother, generation on generation. Thus we became 
children of destruction, unworthy to receive anything from 
the hands of respectable people, and undeservingthe privilege 
of addressing you, Madam. 



272 LETTER FROM SAU QUALA. 

" When I was fifteen years of age, English white rulers, 
the sons of the west, reached this country of Burmah, and 
my father and mother said : ' Now happiness has reached the 
land! They have come by water. Children, you have fallen 
on the time when they arrived.' After a short interval, the 
American teacher Boardman came ; when many believed, 
and I was baptized. A brief period elapsed when teacher 
Mason arrived and teacher Boardman died. I was many 
years with teacher Mason, and then became a preacher and 
was located at Pyeekhya in the southern part of Tavoy; 
being subsequently ordained. 

" In the lapse of years I came to Toungoo, where after 
being a short time with teacher and teacheress Mason, they 
left the country ; and I then went to the Commissioner 
O'Riley. He said to me ; * Teacher, do not be anxious : if 
anything happens, come and tell me.' Many persons, Bghais, 
Mopghas, Pakus, and Manniepghas, believed. Some of the 
Burmese headmen began then to obstruct the work ; so I 
wrote to the Commissioner O'Riley, and he ordered the 
Burmese headmen, saying ; ' A great teacher has gone out 
to the Karens on their mountains, and if they learn to read, 
or build zayats, throw no obstruction in their way.' Some 
of the Burmans then said : ' The Karens are in league with 
the white foreigners, but when the Burmans obtain the city 
again, they will kill the whole of them.' Others said, 
' When the time arrives, the white foreigners will take all 
that learn to read, in their ships, and give them for food to 
a man-eating monster.' Some of the Karens were much 
frightened, for the Burmans bore them malice because they 
were on amicable terms with the English. 

" Subsequently the Commissioner O'Riley came into the 
jungle, and many of the wild Karens visited him ; to whom 
he gave turbans and money, while I preached to them the 



LETTER FROM SAU QUALA. 273 

word of God and exhorted them to learn to read. After 
this teacher Whitaker came. The Commissioner made an- 
other visit to the jungle when he called me to accompany 
him to the Red Karens ; and he purchased food for me, for 
I am not one of those who eat wages. This Commissioner 
is a most excellent man, and all his decisions please the poor 
people exceedingly ; but he has now left Toungoo, and the 
whole of the inhabitants of Toungoo mourn. But now, 
Madam, teacher and teacheress Mason have returned to 
Toungoo. 

" As to the Eed Karens, they are Bghais ; but speak a 
different dialect from the Toungoo Bghais ; and the Pakus 
differ again from them. The Pakus and Manniepghas are of 
the same race as the Sgaus. The Mapghas are a small tribe 
whose language differs from all the others, and I therefore 
think they had the same origin as the Pghas. I send you a 
few specimens of the Bghai, Mopgha, Paku, and Manniepgha 
dresses. 

" All the inhabitants of Toungoo, both Bghai, Mopgha, 
Paku and Manniepgha, are apprehensive lest the English 
should leave the country, for the Burmans will then perse- 
cute them. The Burmans often threaten, saying : ' When 
your white foreigners go away, you will know it !' 

" Teacher Quala's letter of Christian affection, May 26th, 
1857." 

In October 1857, Quala started on a tour through the 
province, and such were the applications for baptism that he 
wrote to Dr. Mason recommending the ordination of four of 
the principal assistants, but Dr. Mason considered that two 
only were in a state to justify their admittance to the office 
of pastor. At this time we have a letter from Quala ad- 
dressed to the American churches. 

" Brethren, children of God in America, rulers, nobles, 
12* 



274 QUALA's LETTER TO AMERICA. 

chiefs, elders, great and small, male and female, rich and 
wealthy, poor and indigent, young men and maidens, children 
and aged, the grey-haired and the toothless, all, every one 
of you, may the only one God our Father, the Lord of heaven 
and earth and all things, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, 
bless you greatly with happiness, abundance, success, skill, 
and permanency ; giving peace to your towns and cities, 
your lands and your waters, your kingdom and your realm, 
your houses and your villages, both to yourselves, and to 
your children, and grandchildren, generation on generation, 
continually without ceasing. 

" Dear friends, I am Quala, a wild man, a son of the forest, 
an uncultivated one who neither knows nor understands any 
thing. I, a dark-minded unworthy one, send you salutation. 
I am not your equal, yet through the grace of God I call you 
brethren. 

" Dear friends, you truly abound in ability, in patient en- 
durance, in love, in mercy, and goodness. Behold, my dear 
friends, had you not sent the teachers and teacheresses to 
us, wild men, the sons of the east, living in darkness, we 
should have gone on to destruction both in this world and 
the world to come for ever. 

" Dear friends, the grace that the white foreigners the sons 
of America have displayed is so much, so great, that it can- 
not be expressed by words. It is exceedingly great, for you 
have saved us from death. Formerly we knew not God ; we 
had no books, and being destitute of instruction we knew 
nothing. 

" When you sent the teachers and teacheresses among us, 
and they told us that G-od loved the world so much that he 
gave us His Son Jesus Christ, who came and purchased us 
by his blood we became Christians, and became able to dis- 
cern between right and wrong; and when the teachers made 



quala's letter to ameeica. 275 

us books, our knowledge increased greatly. Still, the sig- 
nification, the reason of things, 'we understood very imper- 
fectly, and we should have never known, had not the teachers 
and teacheresses taught us and explained them to us ; be- 
cause my dear friends, we are habituated to darkness, and 
things of light we understand with great difficulty. Still 
some make their ears crooked, will not give attention, and do 
not believe ; but on the contrary revile. Pray to God for 
them that they may repent, believe, obtain new hearts, and 
all become disciples like ourselves, 

" God has now displayed' his power in Toungoo ; and many 
sons of the forest, living in darkness, have believed, and your 
kindness is great in sending two teachers to help them. As 
to myself, being of a race of uncultivated men, I am of no 
value ; but through the grace of God I became a disciple of 
Christ in the days of your teacher Boardman ; then I studied 
a very long time in the hands of teacher Mason, and I came 
to know and understand the truth as one in a dream. Still 
I became a teacher to go about preaching and administering 
baptism. This was through your kindness, for when I was 
studying with teacher Mason, you sent the money which you 
gave to teacher Mason. My relatives were unable to support 
me, and had it not been for your money I could not have 
studied nor by any means have acquired the knowledge I have. 
When I think of your kindness, I feel as if I could not extol 
it sufficiently. Though I die, I will praise your goodness to 
my children and grandchildren, and the generation following. 
I am now growing old, my hair is grey, my sight dim, and 
through sickness my strength has failed, so that I have not 
the vigor I had when T studied with teacher Mason; but my 
strength in God has not decreased in the least : pray for me 

" The favor you have shown me, my dear friends, is ex 
eeedingly great. When teacher Mason and the teacheress 



276 "PROGRESS OF THE NORMAL SCHOOL. 

returned to America, I told them the things I would like ta 
have, and they procured the whole of them. They obtained 
for me black alpacca two suits, a white blanket, with many 
other articles of clothing, and a spy glass of the very best 
kind, besides a large quantity of medicine. I also received, 
through your kindness, a cloak from teacher Cross. But, 
brethren, we have received not worldly things of you mere- 
ly, we have received spiritual things also, and forget you, 
can never. Though I cannot speak with you personally, yet 
my love and remembrance of you is uninterrupted, and I 
hope to be able to converse with you in the Kingdom of God, 
and associate with you eternally. My dear friends, the 
greatest favors you have, shown us are sending us teachers 
and teacheresses who came and taught us the word of God, 
made books for us, taught us figures, and instructed us in 
the things of light. 

" Through the power of God, may your towns and cities, 
your lands and waters, your kingdom and domain, your 
houses and dwellings, your plans and devices, your works 
and deeds be established, increased and perfected in good- 
ness, happiness, and light, generation on generation for 

ever. 

" Teacher Quala, 

" July 26th, 1857. A Son of the Forest." 

In November Mrs. Mason writes, "We hear of new sta- 
tions rising up in the Bghai and Paku regions, and the 
prospect in Toungoo is still very bright. Shwaygyeen is 
waking up, and we have had four embassies from that prov- 
ince bringing ' letters of introduction,' and desiring to join 
us in the national institute. We propose establishing a 
Young Men's Normal School to be conducted on the same 
principles as the female one, to be under my superintendence 



THE TEACHER SAUK4. 277 

with the aid of native assistants, Dr. Mason giving lectures 
and taking the higher branches. We have now nearly one 
hundred letters or pledges to the support of the institution 
from the native churches. 

" A few days ago, a young preacher came in on his way to 
the western Sgau region towards Prome. He had two other 
preachers with him and a train of five or six pupils, all going 
out to do battle with the powers of darkness. I asked him 
for his history, and he gave me the accompanying letter. 
Although there is nothing striking in it, it shows the onward 
and upward spirit of these young preachers. They were 
going out of their own free will without scrip or purse, and 
when I suggested they might be in want, — they answered : 
' We go to work for God. When did He ever let his teach- 
ers die of hunger V 

" ' Toungoo, November 6th, 1857. 

<; My Dear Teacheress, 

" ■ Blessings be with thee for ever! 

" ' You ask about myself. I will tell you. At first I lived 
in Bassein, I sought only worldly pleasures, and served 
the devil with a full heart. The Holy Spirit sent from hea- 
ven, stirred up my mind to study the sacred Scriptures, so 
that I could not rest. Then I went to Maulniain and studied 
a year ; after which I heard of teacher Quala in Toungoo, 
and longed to come and help him. Grocl enabled me to come 
to the Paku region to the people of Jauthadeu, where I re- 
mained and instructed them until one hundred believed and 
embraced the gospel. Then I thought to return and study 
more, but sickness prevented whenever I made the attempt 
sol turned my thoughts to the unbelieving Sgaus in the west 
and went out to visit them. On returning from this tour, I 
concluded to return no more to Maulmain or Bassein, and 
wrote for permission to marry in Jauthadeu. Then I took a 



278 HIS VISIT TO THE SGAUS. 

wife of the Palm tribe, and went out on another tour to tha 
Sgaus. At this time one house believed and desired to 
learn so I left one of my pupils to instruct them, and returned 
to my people. Now, about twenty in that country believe, 
and they seem to me like my children, so I am now going 
again to visit, and encourage them. Pray for them, teacher- 
ess. — Sauka.' " 

At the annual association in January, 1858, Dr. Mason in 
writing from the Bghai mountains mentioned many interest- 
ing facts descriptive of the habits of the people, and their un- 
civilized state before the gospel subdues and corrects them. 

" An incident occurred during the Palm association which 
illustrates the state of society among the Toungoo Karens 
better than could be done by a formal description. I was on 
the ground several days before the time of the meeting, and one 
afternoon I went up the mountain with my prismatic compass 
to take bearings. A village was pointed out to me in a recess 
of the mountains which had never been visited by a teacher. 
The people had declared they would spear the first teacher 
that appeared on their domains. The name of the village is 
Htie-thie-pu or 'the dried fountain.'' While the meeting 
was in progress, a Bghai rushed hastily into my presence 
from a Christian village, saying that on Saturday, the day I 
was looking at the place, the people of Htie-thie-pu attacked 
their village, killed two, wounded four, and carried off ten in- 
to captivity. Our Deputy Commissioner, Captain D'Oy]y ? 
was with us the next day, and declared at once that he would 
punish them severely for the depredations. He had a doz- 
en Europeans with him at a neighboring village, and after 
collecting a few Karens, he went and attacked the village, 
killed two men, burning and destroying every thing in the 
place. 

" How interesting is it to see some of these notorious rob- 



LAWLESSNESS OF THE TRIBES. 279 

bers and murderers brought under the sound of the gospel. 
A day's journey beyond the English boundary is a village, 
which, when Quala was there last January, was notorious 
for its depredations. In fact it was a band of robbers, and 
the chief was their captain. Many are the men they have 
killed, and the women and children they have carried into 
captivity. These people have within the year solicited and 
obtained a teacher, and there sat the brigand and forty of 
his followers at our meetings for several days, until their 
rice was exhausted. The chief is a fine looking man, and 
one of the last among the twelve hundred present that I 
should have judged capable of the deeds which are attribu- 
ted to him. Of a widely different physiognomy was the chief 
of a village on the ledge of a precipice, seen from the place 
of assembly on the opposite side of the gorge. The village, 
as seen at some six miles distance, looks like an eagle's 
nest, with an immense precipice rising to it, and ascending 
above it. Tradition says, that some two hundred and fifty 
years ago, at the destruction of Pegu, a party of Talaing men 
fled from their own country, and took refuge on this rocky 
mountain side. Here they made friends with the Karens, 
took Karen wives, and their descendants have nothing to 
distinguish themselves from their Karen neighbors, but the 
ability to make an old fashioned species of earthenware. 
Their habits of committing robbery and murder are as thor- 
oughly Karen as their language, which does not retain a 
trace of the Talaing. Some two years ago, two unfortunate 
trading Burmans ventured too far with their wares into the 
Karen community, and being met by a party from this vil- 
lage, they were considered a lawful prize, killed and de- 
spoiled of their wares. Mr. 'Riley, being informed of the 
outrage, undertook to bring the guilty party to justice, but 
that could not be done by direct means ; so the chief of th< 



280 MANY ARE CHRISTIANIZED. 

next village was engaged to ferret out the offenders. He 
succeeded in ascertaining who the actual murderers were, 
and by coaxing and promising to make himself responsible 
for the lives of the men, he succeeded in persuading the 
murderers and a large party of others to start on a visit to 
Mr. 'Riley, but on the way they began to suspect treachery, 
and all ran away except two, who were secured ; one was 
guilty but the other was innocent. These two men were put 
in jail in Toungoo, and I think, but am not certain, that they 
were both tried and found guilty. Be that as it may, the 
Government in Calcutta were asked if these men should suf- 
fer death according to the English law ; the response was ; 
No, that they were ignorant men not knowing the guilt of 
their crimes, and that they should therefore be dismissed 
with a rebuke. But in this the Government showed igno- 
rance, for a Karen says that blood should be shed for blood, 
and he never allows a homicide to pass unrevenged, if possi- 
ble, though the person may have been slain by accident. 
Just as the order for the release of the prisoners arrived, 
they were both taken with cholera and died in jail the same 
night. The village to which ihej belonged had now their 
death to avenge as much as if they had been hanged ; and 
when Mr. 'Riley passed near their village, they determined 
that his life should pay the forfeit ; and they would have 
speared him while sleeping in his tent, had not the ele- 
phants created a disturbance which awoke him and his 
people. Being defeated here, they turned on the neigh- 
boring chief that had assisted in bringing the criminals 
to justice, first robbing him and finally spearing to death his 
daughter, as she went down to the brook to draw water ; but 
of the murder there is no direct evidence, though no one 
doubts who the authors were. The chief is a very bad look- 
ing old man, but for more than a week, during which we 



FIRST OEDINA'lION IN TOUNGOO. 281 

usually had four meetings a day, that man was never missing 
from the assembly. In our early prayer-meetings when we 
often came together before there was light enough to see to 
read, he was always there before I was. I watched him 
closely, knowing his history, and though I cannot believe 
him a converted man, I must regard him as one with whom 
the Spirit of God is striving. When I conversed with him 
personally, he replied to my remark, ' If you are a follower of 
Christ, you must love your enemies.' ' Yes, I love my ene- 
mies as myself.' Time will test his character." 

We add an account of the first ordination in this remark- 
able province. It was in February, 1858. 

" The first ordination in Toungoo occurred this morning 
where the Karens have lived independent of all Govern- 
ments, Burmese, Talaing, or Shan, from time immemorial. 

" A Council was convened of which Quala was appointed 
Moderator, and Shapau Scribe ; when after prayer, the Coun- 
cil examined the candidate Pwaipau, on his religious ex- 
perience, call to the ministry, and views of doctrine ; which, 
proving satisfactory, it was unanimously voted to proceed to 
his ordination. The order of exercises was as follows : read- 
ing of the Scriptures by Ahtso ; prayer by Waleuhtie ; sermon 
by Shapau ; ordaining prayer by Quala ; hand of fellowship 
by Dr. Mason of Toungoo ; charge by Diepo ; benediction by 
the candidate. Pwaipau belongs to Tavoy and was a mem- 
ber of my theological class, when I made over the school to 
Mr. Cross, under whom he finished his education. When I 
put forth the Macedonian cry for GCoungoo, he volunteered 
for the work and accompanied Quala when he came up and 
joined me. He assisted Mrs. Mason in her Normal school 
till we left, when he removed to Klenla in the centre of the 
Pakus country where he soon had a self-supporting school 
of one hundred pupils. Klenla has bee'n his home evei 



282 . PWAIPAU'S HISTORY. 

since ; but he has constantly itinerated, from the Manniepgha 
country on the west to the eastern boundary of the province, 
and beyond, into the independent Karen districts bordering 
on the Red Karens, and supplying the new stations that he 
founded with teachers from his own school. His field of 
labor embraces about one hundred villages, and his ordina- 
tion effects no change in his circumstances beyond that of 
authorizing him to administer the ordinances. God has 
made him a bishop, and we in ordaining him have only said, 
Amen." 

Dr. Mason further wrote : 

" No feature of the work among the Karens seems to me 
so full of promise as the eagerness with which the young 
preachers seek for information on biblical subjects. During 
the three or four weeks spent with our associations, when- 
ever I sat down to eat, there were always, more or less, 
around me some who were seeking information on difficult 
passages, and when I strolled into the forest at evening, a 
long peripatetic train questioned me at every step. Some- 
times I would seat myself to rest on a granite rock over- 
topping the plains thousands of feet below, when all around 
would quickly seat themselves, a crowd of young men with 
their open Testaments, each eager to ask me concerning 
some passage or another that he found difficult to comprehend. 
One desires me to explain Paul's remark, ' For me to live is 
Christ, but to die is gain :' another, the expression, ' I am 
crucified unto the world, and the world is crucified unto me.' 
A third finds it difficult to understand, ' I could wish my- 
self accursed from Christ ;' and a fourth cannot comprehend 
our Lord's language in relation to John the Baptist ; while 
still another is perplexed with Peter's statement that ' David 
has not ascended into heaven,' ' David who wrote the Psalms, 
he observed, ' has surely gone to heaven ! Were there two 



SHAPAU ORDAINED. 283 

Davids V Some have chronological difficulties to settle ; 
others ask for historical information, and 'others still have 
numerous inquiries to make on the natural productions of 
the Bible ; while not a few have questions to ask that 
Gabriel could not answer. Thus a single lecture is diversi- 
fied, like mosaic work, with theology and botany, exegesis 
and zoology, metaphysics and lightning wires, history, 
sacred and profane, geography, ancient and modern, with a 
sprinkling of almost every other subject of the past, the 
present, and the future. Often after lying down to sleep, I 
hear the young teachers inquiring of their seniors, the sig- 
nification of various passages, and asking information on 
numerous topics on which they have been instructed. In 
this way the knowledge communicated to one is passed on 
to tens, twenties, and thirties ; and my school of theology 
is as wide as the province, and its pupils as numerous as the 
students within its borders. Many in this anomalous way, 
without pausing in their labors, learn more than those im- 
mured for years within brick walls, who complete a curri- 
culum under half a dozen professors ; and it is an undeni- 
able fact that when we need a man to go to a station where 
there is real self-denial to be endured, it is not the man who 
has had a regular course of instruction who goes, but one of 
this irregular corps. These are the men that occupy all our 
new stations, the very out-posts of Christ's kingdom, and 
these are the men whose labors God pre-eminently blesses. 
They are the cream of the churches, rising by the law of 
moral power, a law as immutable as the law of gravitation." 

Shapau was also ordained and afterwards we had the fol- 
lowing account of his first baptisms. 

" Shapau accompanied by Quala has just made the circuit 
of the principal Bghai and Mopgha villages. He has bap- 
tized one hundred and nine persons, laid the foundations of 



284: WIDE DOORS OF USEFULNESS. 

four new churches, and established one new station. In one 
Bghai church seven were suspended ; one Mopgha church 
was found still in the use of charms ; and two or three Bghai 
churches had difficulties with each other, concerning the 
boundaries of their lands. With these exceptions, and we 
have not yet reached the period in the history of the church 
when such exceptions are not to be anticipated, the work 
progresses both in depth and surface. One church among 
the Mopghas lately purchased between twenty and thirty 
New Testaments in addition to their former stock, after con- 
tributing seventy rupees in cash for educational purposes ; 
while they were sending their men by twenties and thirties 
to work on the school buildings and grounds. The Bghais 
are by far the poorest of our people, living as they do with- 
out any permanent cultivation, in a much wilder state than 
the other tribes ; yet when they get money to purchase a 
copy of Matthew in their own language, they almost univer- 
sally prefer to pay half a rupee for a bound copy, to a quarter 
of a rupee for one in paper covers : ' Because,' they say, ' it 
will last longer.' 

" Still the prospect of ' the regions beyond' saddens the 
heart. Quala writing from one of our most northern stations 
says ; ' The people have here recently professed faith in 
Christ. How numerous the impenitent are around them, it 
is impossible to say. I went up to the top of mount Leu 
Kentha and looked to the south, the north, and the west ; 
and there were visible fields and villages as far as the eye 
could reach, and none of them have ever heard the word of 
God. They are men of contention, spearing those who offend 
them, regardless of law, yet were they to hear the word of 
God, they would be subdued without difficulty. Children 
of God, what shall we do ? They are all wild Bghais, and 
when I look around upon them, the language of our Lord 



MRS. MASON IN THE JUNGLE. 285 

Jesus Christ is suggested : *' The harvest is plenteous, but 
the laborers are few.' 

" ' i he gad flies here bite dreadfully, and the mountains 
are piled up ridge upon ridge, one above another, exceed- 
ingly high. Pray for us that we may have strength given 
us to do the work of God fully and thoroughly.' 

" A few days afterwards he writes from another village : 
' These also are wild Bghais. They pay no taxes, permit no 
Government to rule over them, and know very little of God. 
Still they have a zayat with a teacher, and we have hope 
for their conversion hereafter ; for God is able, and, having 
commenced the work, he will carry it on till completed. 
Let us then rejoice and pray fervently with glad hearts.' " 

During the time Dr. Mason was attending the association, 
Mrs. Mason finding that the Karens experienced great diffi- 
culty in getting down the timber from the jungle, determined 
to visit them, and to assist them with superintendence and 
advice, as well as with sympathy and encouragement. Her 
presence seems to have produced the happiest results ; fre- 
quent hindrances had arisen, from one chief refusing to obey 
another chief, one clan or tribe another tribe ; but these diffi- 
culties appear to have vanished under her influence. Every 
evening they met for united prayer and reading of the word 
of God, and made the silent forest resound with songs of 
praise. 

The following is a sketch of one of the Sabbaths spent 
amongst one of the tribes, and re-introduces to us the 
Taubeah chief who visited Mrs. Mason in Toungoo in 1853. 
She writes : 

" Last Sunday I assembled with the "Wethaduies on the 
Mopgha mountains, and had a very pleasant interview. I 
was in a bamboo tent only a few miles from the village, and 
could not refuse their earnest solicitations, so climbed up the 



286 MOUNTAIN PATHS. 

mountains. We started with an elephant, but found the 
path so very steep and rough, I sent it back. The path led 
over three sharp alpine-like peaks and through as many deep 
glens, then out gushed broad sunlight over an immense open 
paddy-field, with here and there a wee bit of a shanty, and I 
began to congratulate myself on finding a resting spot again, 
when I chanced to look forward, and, lo, there were the 
boys who carried my little bundle away on the tip top of 
another cliff almost as far as the eye could reach. I had 
been quite ill the night before with fever, and was far too 
weak for such a jaunt, but it was useless to look back when 
once started ; and besides we could not look downward 
without clinging to the bamboos, or we should have gone 
to the very deeps. So we went plodding on, and even after 
reaching the narrow opening up in the sky, by clinging to 
the roots, rocks, and whatever could help us, still no house 
appeared, nor the slightest vestige of any village, but fol- 
lowing our guide we wound along over the sides'of the hill 
down, down, down, and were about to step off into a ravine 
as black as night, when a dozen hands were raised and a 
whole flood of mountain music burst up the ravine, and held 
us spell-bound ! It was a little congregation, yet far distant, 
at prayer, and singing 

- Rock of ages, cleft for me.' 
" We stayed our steps and listened with emotions inde- 
scribable, glancing over the whole history of the past four 
years in almost as many minutes, until lost in bewildering 
joy ; for well do I recollect the first visit of these Taubeahs 
to our house, and the man who came ' to see if Jesus Christ 
was in Toungoo, or Maulmain, or Bengal,' and who, when I 
told him he had gone to heaven, would not stop a moment, 
but grasped his bamboo spear and stalked away. Now he 
came smiling down the o-len to meet me, his babe in a blanket 



A MOPGFIA HOUSE. 287 

upon his back, for me to bless ! And on reaching the honse, 
every mother to the number of a hundred, I should think, 
brought forth their infants for me to lay my hand upon their 
heads. I did not know what to do, whether to gratify them, 
or refuse, for it seemed fearful to think of standing in the 
place of our blessed Redeemer. However I patted their 
little heads and shook hands with some four hundred, then 
went into the chapel, and explained to them who alone cculd 
bless them and their little ones. The whole village consists 
of one house only, besides the chapel and teacher's residence. 
Imagine a house some four hundred feet long, and thirty wide, 
divided into some thirty rooms ; then another house parallel, 
just separated by a verandah three feet broad ; then still an- 
other parallel, separated by a verandah just the same, and 
all three alike, except the central row which is some ten feet 
shorter at each end, leaving an open court in the front and a 
space for work behind. This central row belongs to the chief 
and his relations, and he holds his court in the first hall. 
Each room has its little bed-rooms just large enough to stretch 
oneself in, with cooking box and all manner of jungle appar- 
atus, while beneath each room is a pig-sty, walled up with 
bamboos to the floor, which is about six or eight feet from 
the ground. There are three separate roofs to the building, 
and under the eaves extend long bamboo spouts. This con- 
stitutes the village of Wethadue, the largest village of the 
Mopgha tribe of Karens. 

" I found forty boys and girls in this village who could 
read very well and repeat the catechism by heart. Several 
of them have been baptized." 

On her return from the jungle, Mrs. Mason wrote : " I 
felt very sad about spending time in the jungle traversing 
pathless mountains and glens in search of timber, but now 
I see the hand of God leading me onward, for in no other 



288 THE TIMBER GATHERED. 

way could I have come so near to the hearts of the people, 
or been made acquainted with their individual characters. 
Now I know whom to trust, and how each can be made most 
useful 

" It was one of the most interesting nights I ever spent, 
when we encamped at the mouth of the river, after three 
months of hard toil, six weeks of which I had spent with 
them, teaching them to make roads and drag logs up the 
mountains. Now there lie the logs strung to bamboos filling 
the river. 

" A hundred Karens were stretched round six or eight 
camp fires, covering the long sand bank just below my tent, 
which was pitched on the overhanging cliff. The full moon 
was rising behind the trees, its soft light shining upon the 
waters, and lighting up the dark faces of the Karens. We 
all knelt down and poured out our hearts in grateful praise, 
and after singing a hymn, I got into my little boat and came 
down to the city, reaching home at midnight. 

" I am thankful that I was able to be with them for it 
cheered them not a little, taught them to think and reason 
more correctly, and through God's mercy prevented much 
sickness. During the last week many have come in to see 
the logs and look upon them with great delight and satisfac- 
tion. No doubt it will be far better for the people that they 
have had to. work hard for the timber, for had I purchased 
it, they would never have valued it half so much. Now they 
are pouring down to settle round the Institute, and thirty 
houses are already erected, and four streets are regularly 
laid out." 

Finding that the Burmese and Karen girls would not 
amalgamate, a house was secured for a Burmese school on 
the city side of the river. Every night Bible classes were 
held with the workers on the land. One evening the subject 



BGHAI PUBLIC SPIRIT. 289 

had been the two great commandments, and as Mrs. Mason 
was returning home afterwards, a wild looking Karen met 
her on the steps and said, " I wonder, teacheress, if I love 
God with all my strength. The chiefs say if we do, we shall 
work for Him with all our strength : I am thinking if I can 
do this." He wished Mrs. Mason to supply his men with 
rice or even paddy, and ten men would remain and work a 
week at the buildings, buying their own curry. Mrs. Mason 
was obliged to tell him she could not do this, but after dis- 
cussing the matter with his men he finally came back and 
said they would go home, and make some baskets, and bring 
them down, and buy for themselves. This they did, and 
soon returned with their heads loaded with baskets, to sell 
for their support while building a school house for their na- 
tion. These men were from the Bghai mountains, wild and 
uncivilized, but who will say they cannot be taught patriot- 
ism ? Mrs. Mason says, " One of our Karen board of man- 
agers thought the other day we ought to have more hands at 
work, so calling for a writer he sent off letters in all direc- 
tions, and in three days we had fifty more men here putting 
up the dormitories, all feeding themselves and working like 
men. All brought letters from their teachers saying how 
many had come, from which I learned that those who re- 
mained at home contributed areca nuts, rice, fish, and all 
sorts of things for those who came. 

" It is most pleasing to see the interest felt in making our 
new town a holy place. Every one brings a letter of introduc- 
tion, and has to pass through the ordeal of criticism ; as the 
chiefs are called on to state what they know of every one, so 
that it is not easy for a bad or lazy person to get into our 
little community. Every one gives a pledge that he will not 
be idle, and we have put up a large board at the entrance of 
our highway, on which is written in large letters : — 

13 



290 IMPROVED MANNERS. 

'No idlers here.' 
" Each one who lives or stops to rest here, is compelled 
to attend worship every night. 

" One of the Board examines all on the place on Saturdays, 
and brings me a report which is read on the Sabbath. But 
what encourages me not a little is to seethe pig-pens vanish. 
Last year the two men who first settled here put up pig-pens 
right under their doors, according to their custom. I men- 
tioned to the Nah Khan, the Commissioner's agent, how 
offensive it was, and that hereafter we would not have them. 
' Mamma,' he exclaimed, 'if you do so, not a single one 
will live here.' So I let it pass, and the pens have remained 
just six months. A few weeks ago when they were building 
new houses I spoke of it in the chapel, and that it would grieve 
me to see them. The next morning, away went the pig-pens, 
and every yard was swept neatly. Jt has become a custom 
for every follower of Christ's law to come forward and give 
his hand, which is saying, ' I am with you ;' but they have, 
for all this four years, been in the habit of giving their hands, 
just as they chance to be, covered with earth or lime, or any- 
thing else. Last year I did not dare to speak of it, but now 
they know me all over the jungles as a friend, and so I am 
trying gently to change that, by telling all to lay off their 
loads, go to the river, and wash and put up their hair, then 
I shall know who they are. A few have walked off, Bghais, 
who are the filthiest people I am sure in the world, but gen- 
erally now they rush for the river before coming to give the 
hand. All this I trust will have more or less effect upon their 
hearts, and lead them to more watchfulness. 

" Then again our village school will I expect become a 
model for all the Paku, Mopgha, Bghai, Sgau, and Red Karen 
villages. It numbers forty pupils, some young women, and 
it is such a pleasure to look in and see them every morning 



REPORT OF THE MISSION. 291 

with clean hands and faces and neatly dressed hair. Many 
have got new dresses, and the little looms are cropping out 
in every direction, and yarn, and dyeing even, among those 
who are encamped on the ground, their houses being yet 
unbuilt. This shows that they are getting some idea of 
whole and clean clothes, and of providing them for them- 
selves, instead of looking to the missionary to give them. 
Besides, I am going to discourage foreign dress, and allow 
my girls to wear only their own manufacture. Their own 
cloth is very durable, and their own costume neat and 
pretty, except the men's gown, and even that looks well with 
the thin loose Shan pantaloons which many wear." 

In the beginning of 1858, Dr. Mason in writing of the 
trials, hopes and present aspect of the Mission in Toungoo, 
gave the following condensed report. 

" Though funds in America fail, God is with us, and if He 
has prepared a field for the seed and sent the sower into it, 
as he has done here, he will most assuredly send him tools 
to work with. 

" I append the statistics of the Toungoo Mission, premising 
that the name of Christ was first proclaimed in the province 
in October, 1853, from which date the mission commences. 
Associations ... . . . . 2 

a. The Paku Association, embracing Pakus and Manniep 

ghas. 
h The Bghai Association, including Bghais and Manni- 
epghas. 

Stations . 101 

Churches .... 42 

Village schools ...... 101 

Preachers and teachers (native) . . 103 

Ordained native preachers .... 3 

Pupils in village schools .... 2,420 



292 



REPORT OF THE MISSION. 



Baptized in 1857 
Excluded 
Suspended . 
Restored 
Died . 
Present number 



129 

7 

29 

14 

66 

2,640 



"We have also a Karen Education Society, which was 
founded in 1857, and has in its charge two boarding schools, 
The National Female Institute, and a Young Men's Normal 
School, open to all the native tribes of Burmah. This so- 
ciety embraces eighty-six chiefs, who have sent in letters 
pledging themselves and thousands of their people to sup- 
port permanently the Institute ; except the teachers, who 
for the present are dependent upon friends in India, England 
and Scotland. The pledges are not yet all received for the 
Young Men's Normal School, but it is confidently expected 
that they will assume the responsibility of carrying it on, as 
they have the girl's school. 

" The Female Institute was opened in May 1857, and 
numbered during the first session twenty-four pupils, besides 
nine that were sent back to the jungles for the want of room. 
These include Sgaus, Pakus, Manniepghas, Mopghas, Bghais, 
and two Burmese. None are received under twelve years 
of age, none for a less period than one year, and all are 
taught in their own vernacular tongues. The studies em- 
brace reading, writing, geography, history, mathematics, 
something of natural philosophy, physiology, and the Holy 
Scriptures, with plain sewing, cooking, washing, and general 
cleanliness ; together with nursing the sick, and training 
children. There is also an ornamental department, intended 
principally for the Burmese and Shans, which no cne is al- 
lowed to enter till she can read and write well in her own 



CONTRIBUTIONS. 293 

language. This school is entirely in the charge of Mrs. 
Mason, aided by four native assistants, but a young lady is 
expected from the United States in the present year to assist 
in the Burmese and Shan department. 

" The Young Men's Normal School commences with the 
approaching rains, and will be limited, like the female 
school, to fifty pupils. It will be instructed in Biblical ex- 
ercises, mathematics, philosophy, and practical land-survey- 
ing by myself, but in all minor branches by native teachers. 
This school is on the grounds of the Institute, and the board- 
ing and all the other financial matters are in the hands of 
Mrs. Mason. For this department the chiefs have built a 
large bamboo school-house, and a boarding-house of one 
hundred and fifty feet by fifteen, also a good house for the 
teacher, the first with a wooden frame and floor ever built by 
the Karens of Toungoo. 

" For these schools the Karens here contributed — 
970 Rupees in cash, 
1 Elephant, 

3 Goats, 

4 Pigs, 
170 Fowls, 
200 Eggs, 

65 Mats, 
15 Baskets, 

12 Large chopping knives, 
150 Long ratans 
10 Large bundles of bark rope, 
1580 Large bamboos, 
2000 Small 
1 Boat, 
" They have also felled and brought to town fifty teak logs, 
six cubits by thirty, given by Government for the school- 



294: CONTftlBUIIONS. 

building, and eighty iron-wood posts, some of them very 
valuable, fifty feet in length. This is a very remarkable 
performance for mountaineers, since, though wholly unac- 
quainted with the water and unable to swim, and knowing 
nothing of the timber business, they brought them down a 
large stream and then several miles down the Sitang. They 
have also built twelve bamboo houses for families to live in 
as a protection to the Institute, and are now making four 
streets in a village of thirty houses growing up around the 
grounds. The Indian Government has liberally granted 
thirty-two acres of land to the Institute lying upon the 
Sitang river, and 1400 rupees for the buildings. The Cal- 
cutta Tract Society has given books to the value of 100 
rupees and a valuable set of illustrative prints. A publish- 
ing house in Philadelphia has sent us a set of large outline, 
maps ; and friends in Calcutta an excellent prismatic compass. 
All the land, buildings, apparatus, furniture, and everything 
pertaining to these schools is the property of the Karen 
Education Society, which held a convention in August, 1857, 
and chose a band of managers, consisting of one Paku, one 
Manniepgha, one Mopgha, one Tunic Bghai ; Capt. Doyly, 
Deputy Commissioner, Toungoo, agreeing to act as Presi- 
dent. The whole is entirely independent of every mission- 
ary association." 



POSITION OF THE MISSIONARIES. 295 



CHAPTEE XIY. 

THE CONCLUSION. 

" Who knoweth not in all these, that the hand of the Lord hath wrought 
this V'— Job xii. 9. 

A glance at the various other stations must conclude these 
sketches. Never were the prospects of the mission, gener- 
ally, brighter than now, and never were the missionaries la- 
boring more earnestly in their calling. Differences of senti- 
ment, however, have divided them, and no longer are they 
all connected with the same Missionary Union in America. 

When Dr. Judson was at Serampore in 1811, he adopted 
the sentiments, of the Baptist churches, and his connexion 
with the Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions ter- 
minated. He went forward to Burmah, not knowing whether 
the Baptists in America would form a Missionary Society or 
not. The Serampore Missionaries, however, supported him, 
and ere long the American Baptist Missionary Union was 
established. It was by that Board that the mission in Bur- 
mah was maintained till recently. In 1853, a deputation 
from the Union visited Burmah, and eventually some differ- 
ences arose respecting the measures then adopted, and the 
reports subsequently made in America ; the result of which 
is that Mrs. Yin ton, Mr. Bray ten, Mr. Beecher, and Mr. 
Harris are now in connexion with the " American Baptist 
Free Mission Society." Mr. Kincaid occupies an independ- 
ent position. On the other hand Dr. TVade, Dr. Mason. Mr. 



296 PASTORS IN TAVOY. 

Thomas, and others, continue their former relation to the 
Missionary Union It is not needful or desirable to enter fur- 
ther into this subject. St. Bernard's sweet saying, " It will be 
one of the felicities of heaven that the saints shall no longer 
misunderstand one another," must be our comfort, when 
here on earth we see no present prospect of reconciliation. 
Happily the differences of opinion among real Christians 
generally do not appear so wide as once they were, and the 
greater part, with the late beloved Bishop of Calcutta, Daniel 
Wilson, can rejoice that " we no longer maintain the old and 
fatal mistake that Christian men are not to co-operate in 
anything till they are agreed in everything. "We now hold the 
antagonistic and true maxim, that Christians should act to- 
gether so far as they are agreed." May this ever be the rule 
in Burmah, in America, and in every land where Jesus reigns 
in the hearts of men as the Prince of peace ! We shall now 
proceed to a review of the different stations. 

Tavoy. 

In the year 1857, we find at Tavoy in the Karen depart- 
ment, Mr. and Mrs. Cross, and in the Burman part of the 
mission Mr. and Mrs. Allen. Mr. Cross, during the season, 
made extensive tours among the churches in the jungle. He 
found them in various conditions ; some declining, others 
flourishing like watered gardens. At Pyeekhya more es- 
pecially every thing was prospering, and the little flock ap- 
peared like a well organized Christian body, full of intelli- 
gence, and walking in the fear of God. 

The pastors of the churches are mentioned by Mr. Cross 
as being "men fully consecrated to the Lord, submitting to 
much self-denial, for the privilege of preaching the gospel. 
They seldom obtain from their churches more than five or 
eight rupees a year, such is the great poverty in this province ; 



THE ORIGIN OF EVIL ILLUSTRATED. 297 

but they are content, and the spirit manifested by them when 
they heard that the American Mission was in difficulty was 
beyond all praise. Cheerfully they surrendered the small 
pittance they had been accustomed to receive from its funds 
and would have willingly given every man his coat also, had 
we asked it." 

The following extract from Mr. Cross's journal is given as 
a specimen of the character of his labors during the past year. 

" I have never been more encouraged than I am now by 
the stir among the heathen, and the new spirit which seems 
to be awakened among them. I trust it will not be long be- 
fore better days will come for us in this region 

" Th.9 deacon of a little church, with their preacher, accom- 
panied me on this tour, and surprised me by the power of 
his arguments to convince the ungodly of their sins, and to 
rout them from their strong-holds of superstition and error. 
On one occasion a man who seemed to be much interested 
and who lingered after the sermon in the evening to converse 
presented one of the constant objections against the goodness 
and government of God, that He allowed men to sin, and had 
not so created them that they could not fall into evil. He 
said ; ' Why did God create man with this liberty or possi- 
bility within him ?' The old man replied, 'Ask me why God 
created fire, and your difficulty will be settled. Without 
this substance with all its qualities, who could be happy; — 
Who could live ? Who could eat or breathe? See the coldness 
and death that would instantly take the place of life and 
warmth which now cheer the world. But over what are we 
obliged to maintain a stricter watch ? You never leave your 
house without first ordering your children to be careful about 
fire ; and when it rages, there is nothing so full of the 
power to inflict injury. What was evidently created for the 
greatest good becomes instantly the source of the greatest 

13* 



298 A KAREN CONVERT. 

evil when it transcends its limits and is wrongly applied. 
Your liberty was created for good. Without it death takea 
the place of life, and coldness the place of warmth. But 
when your liberty is abused and misapplied, like the break- 
ing out of fire, it riots in evil. But to check this evil all 
liberty must not be destroyed, any more than to save your 
house all fire must be extinguished from the earth. It must 
be put out only in the extreme, where it destroys. It is not 
to destroy fire, but to save a burning house, that efforts are 
made. Because of the nature of fire, many houses will needs 
be burned ; yet without it no man would exist. So, because 
of liberty, many souls will be ruined ; but without it, none 
would exist. Consider this illustration, and you r?eed have 
no more difficulty about the question, — Why God has made 
man capable of sin.' Such was the old man's argument. It 
is worthy to be uttered by a philosopher of other pretensions 
than a simple Karen, whose only book has been his Bible. 

" This man was one of the first of the Karens who heard 
the gospel in this province from Mr. Boardman. His 
language often is, — ' None ever was or could be more wicked 
than I have been. There is no oath which I have not uttered, 
none of the Nats which I have not worshipped. With all 
this I was a drunkard. But when the teacher asked me, 
Will you repent and believe % I immediately said, ' Teacher, 
yes.' I felt that there was no other way to be saved from 
my sins. And I did not wait to break off from them by my 
own strength ; but I cast myself upon Christ — and He has 
saved me. I am now happy. I do not fear death. I say, 
"Let death come uhen God shall send it." ' Such a mind as 
this, and such faith, exist in a body covered with rags, and 
of so inferior personal appearance that the man would be 
taken by a stranger to be even below the majority of his 
degraded and filthy race. Yet the depth and originality of 



DISAPPEARANCE OF THE PRIESTS. 299 

his ideas in regard to the gospel seem almost to border upon 
inspiration. His religion is not merely for the Sabbath. 
He says, ' I can do nothing "without prayer. When I go to 
my field, before I begin my work, I stop and lift up my heart 
to God, and say, " God, drive all evil from this place. 
Let no lurking beast of prey or evil temptation come nigh 
me while I am at work, and let the work of my hands be 
blessed. Let the field which I am now to cut for my rice, 
be fruitful." When I have thus prayed, I feel happy and 
cheerful to begin my work, and believe that God will defend 
me and bless me." ' 

Mr. Allen's labors were confined entirely to the Burmans, 
and in his tours this year he seems to have found the people 
very accessible. The influence of the priesthood seems also 
to be dying out. lie writes : 

" Formerly there were six, ten, or twenty priests in every 
village. Now nearly half of the villages have none at all. 
and but few have more than two or three. It is almost im- 
possible for parents to keep their sons in the kyoungs. To 
do this at all they have to take them from their own villages, 
transport them across the river, and place them in a kyoung 
on the opposite side where they are strangers. Even then, 
they will run away and leave the kyoungs. This is an encour- 
aging feature in one respect. When the priests all leave the 
kyoungs, the people will be more free to think afld inquire ; 
and I cannot but believe that they will be more anxious for 
religious schools and school teachers. Yet one thing is cer- 
tain; — without the Spirit of God shed upon us and them they 
will never become true Christians." 

The following sketch of a visit to 7 a Burman village is in- 
teresting : " In the morning, after trying to tell the people 
of the two houses of Enga-wendwin how they might be saved, 
I started for a village a mile or two below. I preached U 



300 A BUEMAN VILLAGE. 

all I met on the way ; some three or four houses being scat 
tered along under the mountain, whose very base was washed 
by the ocean. On arriving at the village called Kyoung- 
nee-man, I was much struck by its beauty. It is situated on 
an elevation which overlooks the sea, and where at all sea- 
sons of the year, can be inhaled the bracing breezes of the 
Indian Ocean. 

" The people were no less cordial than their village was 
lovely. I was at once invited to a house, which was soon filled 
with listening hearers. After discoursing to them for more 
than an hour without a word of opposition, I stopped and 
asked them if they had understood what I had been telling 
them. They said they understood all. They then invited 
me to come and lodge in the kyoung, saying that their priests 
had all left. To this I, of course, readily consented. 

" After breakfast, and the tide serving, having walked 
back to the upper village, we put our goods into the boat, and 
descending to Kyoung-nee-man, moored our bark at the foot 
of the hill and placed our effects in the kyoung. Here we 
remained two nights. I never had more attentive listeners 
than at this village. They all assented to the reasonableness 
of the gospel, but they were not quite ready to receive it. 
The kyoung in which we stopped, like all kyoungs, had a 
great quantity of idols. I proposed to the people to throw 
these idols into the jungle, saying, if the idols would return 
of their own accord I would also worship them ; but if not, 
the people should forsake them, and worship the eternal 
God. To this they would not consent. Still, on leaving the 
village, I could not but feel that the time is not far distant 
when these villages will receive the gospel." 
Maulmain. 
At Maulmain Dr. and Mrs. "Wade continue to conduct the 
Karen Theological Seminary. When the school was re-or- 



THE KAREN SEMINARY. 301 

ganized in 1853, Dr. Wade found but fourteen pupils ; the 
number, however, gradually increased to about fifty, while 
their piety as well as the proficiency in their studies gave 
him great satisfaction. During the three months' vacation 
the young men used to go out preaching or teaching in dis- 
tant Karen villages. Mrs. Wade writes : " The school has 
continued to increase in interest to the present time ; a good 
number of young men have finished their three years' course 
of study, and have gone forth to the ' fields white for the 
harvest,' while new classes have taken their places. The 
preaching talent of these young Karens, their ardent desire 
for biblical knowledge, and wish to enter the ministry (though 
they have no worldly prospects beyond such as the Karen 
churches can give them,) seem to us quite as remarkable as 
the conversion to God of so many of their countrymen. 

The school was for a time in some difficulty from the want 
of funds, but we have reason to believe this obstacle was 
soon, in some measure, removed ; and it is interesting to find 
Dr. and Mrs. Wade still pursuing their patient labors on to 
the close of their long and useful lives. Mrs. Wade recently 
wrote : 

" If we have been enabled to labor faithfully, and with 
some degree in success, for more than thirty years, in this 
good work to which the Lord called us, we attribute much to 
the encouragement we have ever received from the friends 
we left behind, and especially to their prayers. And now 
that our poor labors are nearly finished, we look forward 
with sure and humble hope to those bright mansions where, 
through grace alone, we expect soon to rejoice together with 
these precious children whom the Lord has given us in this 

dark land. 

' Better than daughters, or than sons, 
Temples divine, of liviDg stones, 
Inscribed with Jesus' Dame.' 



302 KAREN CHURCHES NEAR MAULMAIN. 

" I feel it a great mercy, a most undeserved blessing, thai 
the physical, and especially the nervous debility, induced by 
a long residence in this hot climate, is seldom permitted to 
dim the fair prospect of heavenly glory. As I approach 
nearer and nearer the ' dark waters,' the mild light from the 
other side shines more and more upon my pathway. My 
courage may fail when called to go over ; but Christ will 
not fail the soul which trusts humbly, penitently, and believ- 
ingly, in his rich, free grace." 

A new arrangement has lately been made for the Theolog- 
ical Seminary. Dr. Binney, who formerly for some years 
conducted it in Maulmain with great ability, is now return- 
ing from America to resume his charge. The school will be 
established at Rangoon, and Dr. Wade in the evening of his 
days will be relieved of a large part of his arduous duty. 

Mr. Hibbard is in charge of the Karen churches round 
Maulmain. They were in trial from the effort to introduce 
the self-supporting system, which was considered to be essen- 
tial to permanency and strength. Notwithstanding their 
difficulties, every pastor remained at his post, the richer 
churches contributing to assist their poorer brethren ; while 
several of the pastors worked with their own hands a part 
of the time to help to support their families, while minister- 
ing to the little flock over which the Holy Ghost had made 
them overseers. Schools also have been established in some 
of the larger villages, in which their children are taught to 
read, supported entirely by themselves. " Thus," wrote 
Mr. Hibbard, " I feel confident that these churches will live ; 
they are trees of our Heavenly'Father's planting." 

Mr. Bennett superintends the printing department, while 
Mr. Haswell still labors among the Burmans and Takings 
at Maulmain, with occasional visits to Amherst and the out- 
stations. 



THE KARENS OF BASSEIN. 303 

Shwaygyeen. 
At Shwaygyeen, deprived of the succor of Mr. Harris, 
Mr. Watrous, since the end of 1856, has been laboring alone, 
but the blessing of the Lord has been with him, and thus 
" judgment has dwelt in the wilderness, and righteousness 
remained in the fruitful field." Ere long Mr. Harris hopes 
to return to the midst of this interesting people. 

Bassein. 

We have had occasion before to refer to the Bassein Mis- 
sion. Mr. Van Meter, after laboring there for some years, 
has been obliged to return to America for a time, but he has 
left the impress of his labors behind him. Mr. Beecher, 
after a visit to his native land, again resumed his work among 
the Karens of Bassein in the beginning of 1857. In Feb- 
ruary of that year he wrote the following interesting account 
of one of their meetings : 

" The churches of this mission have just held another 
annual, or Associational Meeting. The exercises of the 
meeting commenced on Thursday, a.m. the 26th of January, 
and closed on the Sabbath evening following. 

" Mauyay, one of the ordained pastors, was chosen Mod- 
erator, and Thahree, an intelligent young pastor, was appoint- 
ed secretary. 

" Zoepoe and Poky an, head teachers of two more advanced 
village schools, were appointed assistant secretaries. 

" Mr. and Mrs. Vinton of the Rangoon Karen Mission 
were present by the special invitation of the Karens, and 
Mr. Thomas of the Henthadah Mission by the direction of the 
Executive Committee of the Missionary Union. Their pres- 
ence added much interest to the exercises of the occasion. 
After the preliminary services, the first important business 
was the reading of the letters of the churches. More than 



304 LIBERALITY OF THE CHURCHES. 

fifty churches, comprising a membership of 5345 persons, 
were represented by letters and delegates. 

"It was just ten years since I attended, for the first time, 
the associational meeting of these churches. How great and 
how gratifying the progress which has been made in this short 
period is indicated in the contrast between the character and 
contents of the letters presented then, and those read on this 
occasion, or perhaps I should rather say in the contrast be- 
tween the almost entire lack of anything like regular reports 
from the churches by letter or delegates then, and the care 
fully prepared and comprehensive letters read at this meet 
ing! 

" Then, too, the preachers came to receive aid from the 
missionary, and had much to say about their poverty and 
trials, and were for several years accustomed to receive 
through the missionaries from three to seven hundred rupees. 
Now, the letters report that the churches, besides giving 
their pastors from seventy-five to two hundred baskets of pad- 
dy each, contributed various other articles of food and cloth- 
ing, and have altogether paid their pastors in money during 
the past year more than 1400 rupees. Besides this, they 
have unitedly contributed more than nine hundred rupees to 
the funds of their Home Mission Society ; given to the poor, 
173 rs.; expended in erecting chapels, over 800 rs. ; paid 
their school teachers 901 rs. ; and contributed about 100 rs. 
to aid me in erecting mission buildings. The whole amount 
of what they have expended in the past year for religious 
and educational purposes exceeds six thousand rupees. 

" In the course of the meeting it was proposed that the 
churches should pay for, and hold as their property, the mis- 
sion buildings which I am now erecting. Much Zealand de- 
termination was manifested by several of the leading pas- 
tors, to have more done for the education of their children 



LIBERALITY OF THE CHURCHES. 305 

in this province than is now being done for that purpose. 
Some were quite anxious that I should devote myself chief- 
ly to this work ; but when they saw that I could not do this 
without neglecting the churches, they conceived the project 
of calling another missionary from America who should de- 
vote himself wholly to this work, and whom they should sup 
port. All the pastors present were ready to vote in favor of 
the resolution, but thought it would involve such new ano. 
heavy responsibilities, that it would not be prudent to under- 
take it without consulting with their churches, from whom the 
means of supporting such a missionary must come. They 
concluded to consult with their churches, and separately in- 
form me of their decisions at an early date. I have since 
heard from several of the feebler churches, that they have 
many misgivings about their ability to support such a school, 
and it is my impression that if they pay for the mission 
building this year it will be as much as they will be able to 
accomplish, if they carry forward all their other benevolent 
enterprises. 

" The fact, however, that they have, entirely of their own 
accord, seriously proposed to call and support such a mis- 
sionary or educator, is a most gratifying indication of the 
progress which they are making in Christian benevolence 
and enterprise, and is full of promise for their future stabil- 
ity and instrumentality in evangelizing their own and sur- 
rounding races. 

" The Home Missionary Society appointed five young men 
to accompany Mr. Kincaid to &ysl, and to proceed from 
thence as Providence shall seem to open their way to 
preach the gospel to the heathen Karens in the ' regions 
beyond.' " 

In April 1857 a most terrific cyclone swept over the entire 
province of Bassein, leaving whole villages and cities in 



306 DESIRE FOE THE BIBLE. 

ruins. The Christian Karens, besides having their houses 
and chapels injured, and much of their paddy destroyed, had 
many of their books completely spoiled. This loss was the 
more serious, as some of the books, the Karen Bible espe- 
cially, were out of print. Mrs. Beecher refers to this want 
in the following letter. She writes : — 

" I have been both gratified and surprised at the intel- 
ligence and desire for knowledge shown by two young 
women, who have come in from a village a very short time 
ago sunk in heathen degradation. They said they had studied 
the books of Moses, and I have been examining them in 
Genesis, and find that they not only remember very correctly 
and fully everything, but that they have a good general un- 
derstanding of the facts ; and not only so, but that they have 
some idea of types and of an inner significance, which is a 
very rare thing indeed. They understand my imperfect 
Karen very readily, and take notes of the references and 
explanations I give them. I never saw brighter, or more 
hopeful scholars, especially considering that they have 
never been with a missionary, but have only studied with 
their native pastor, whose own advantages have been very 
limited. 

" But I should greatly mislead you, if I gave you an idea 
that these are at all fair representatives of the Karen women 
of Bassein. I have been greatly grieved and sometimes 
quite discouraged by their stupidity, ignorance, and absence 
of desire for knowledge. # Multitudes of them cannot read 
at all, and very few read the Bible. Indeed, the most dis- 
couraging feature of the Karen mission here is the scarcity 
of Bibles, and the general absence of Bible reading among 
the people. Sometimes my heart sinks. How can they be 
holy, how can they grow in grace and avoid the institutions 
of the heathen, if they do not get the pure milk of the word 1 



THE BURMANS OF BASSEIN. 307 

I have been in villages, Christian villages, where there was 
not an entire Bible ! They come to us to buy ; but we have 
them not, and are obliged to send them empty and grieved 
away. But you know the course of human nature. The 
more the Bible is read, the more it is desired ; and the less 
we read it, the less we care for it, — and so it is with these 
people just emerging from the lowest depths of degradation, 
— the deprivation of God's holy book to so great an extent, 
and the absence of an opportunity to become better acquainted 
with its truths through the missionary for several years, are 
already showing their sad fruits in many ways, and one of 
the most discouraging is an increasing indifference to the 
study of the Scriptures. There is great need of earnest 
prayer and effort lest this great and glorious work should 
decline. Many of the native pastors feel and lament this 
state of things, but the more ignorant and those who need 
instruction very much, seem quite indifferent about it. 

" Will you not pray for us that God may revive his work 
here? And I do trust that Christians both in India and 
America will aid in providing God's holy word for these poor 
ignorant pecple, that they may be sanctified through the truth, 
and not relapse into the heathenism from which they have so 
lately escaped." 

While Mr. and Mrs. Beecher were thus giving their atten- 
tion to the Karens, Mr. Douglas was no less earnestly labor- 
ing for the good of the Burmans of Bassein. During the 
years 1857-58, he had been able uninterruptedly to pursue 
his work, especially in the jungles, visiting from village to 
village, preaching the gospel, and distributing tracts. In 
some of these villages his heart was cheered by many a lis- 
tener, sometimes by a few inquirers, some of whom gave evi- 
dence of their faith in Christ, and love to his name. But the 
work amongst the Burmans here as elsewhere, is attended 



308 THE NORTHERN KARENS - 

with difficulty, and as compared with that amongst the Karens 
the missionary meets with little encouragement. At the same 
time labor amongst them has been owned and blessed. G-od 
has shown mercy to some, and who shall despise the day of 
small things ? 

It has long been the opinion of some of the missionaries, 
that a large number of Karens, if not the body of the Karen 
nation, lived north of Ava. This impression had produced a 
strong desire on the part of some of the churches to send 
missionaries into that region. No steps, however, had been 
taken to this end until October, 1858, when at the meeting 
of the Karen ministerial conference, and Home Mission Socie- 
ty at Bassein, the subject was brought to the consideration 
of the native preachers. The meeting had been marked by a 
spirit of fervent prayer, unity, and love, and when the call 
for volunteers to go to the Karens north of Ava was made, 
many expressed a desire to go, but none were appointed until 
the following Sabbath evening. Mr. Douglas then asked if 
the Rev. Poe Quay was not the man. He appeared at first 
surprised, but after a little hesitation confessed that his mind 
had been filled with a. strong desire for this work, and that 
he only wanted the concurrence of his brethren to believe it 
to be his duty to leave his church, his wife and his children, 
and to go forth as a herald of salvation to that vast region 
between Ava and Assam. 

The concurrence of his brethren was cheerfully and 
-promptly given, and Poe Quay and two other young men 
were at once appointed to the work. Mr. Beecher then 
addressed the Society on the important and serious responsi- 
bilities they had assumed, and reminded them that they 
must continue in persevering prayer, while they consecrated 
all they possessed to the service of G-od. More than one 



PEOGBESS AT HENTHADA. 309 

hundred rupees were then contributed by the Karens for 
the mission. 

Poe Quay and his young associates will go two, three, or 
four hundred miles north of Ava, and after spending some 
months in exploring the field, and preaching, he will locate 
the young men in suitable places, and return to report not 
only upon their reception, but as to the number of the Karen 
population, and the dialects spoken. Poe Quay is a man, 
from his fine intellectual powers, education, eloquence, and 
devoted piety, well fitted for the work, and, with the bless- 
ing of God, it may not be less glorious in its results than 
Quala's at Toungoo. Mr. Douglas proposes accompanying 
the little embassy as far as Ava, and hopes not only to aid 
them in their mission, but to accomplish something amongst 
the Burmans also. 

Henthada. 

At Henthada Mr. Thomas superintends the Karen mis- 
sion. When he first went there in 1855, being able to 
speak the language of the people, he entered at once on a 
wide field, where the light of the gospel had not permanently 
shone. He took with him three native assistants, and was 
soon joined by as many more. 

The first work was necessarily to preach the gospel to the 
heathen ; for the Karens until they have made up their minds 
to become Christians, will not learn to read, nor will they per- 
mit a book to remain in their houses. During the first travel- 
ing season the missionary's work therefore was to proclaim the 
gospel, and that, " in season and out of season," whether they 
would hear, or whether they would forbear. In this tour Mr. 
Thomas went through many populous regions of Karens in the 
Henthada province, and penetrated at several points into the 
Tharrawaddy district, and not only preached Christ " where 
he had not been named," but stationed assistants in every 



310 NATIVE ASSISTANTS. 

place where the people were willing to receive them. Thus 
"before the rains set in, in which season it is impossible to 
travel, many native helpers were at work among the people. 

The work of assistants was two-fold. They preached from 
house to house and taught to read all who were desirous 
of learning. The first educational operations were thus com- 
menced in the houses of these new converts. There the 
people learned to read and write in their own tongue. At 
the close of a few months a few were regarded worthy of 
receiving baptism. Then commenced the normal boarding 
school in the city. The first term of the school was compo- 
sed of young men from those young converts, who could 
read and write, and some older Christian men from the bor- 
ders of Bassein, whom Mr. Thomas hoped to make useful as 
preachers and teachers. 

The next six months were passed by the missionary in 
town, almost daily preaching to the heathen visitors, but 
laboring more especially to train up a native ministry. 

The second dry season passed as the first, except that 
there was here and there a little flock, which after its gath ■ 
ering, had to be tended, while the village schools became 
more systematic, and were removed from dwelling-houses 
into chapels. Before the second rains closed in, there were 
nearly three hundred baptized disciples in this and the 
Tharrawaddy districts, for God had poured out His Holy 
Spirit, and had made this wilderness to blossom as the rose. 

From these disciples, a second normal school of about 
twenty was formed in the city. These were not mere boys, 
they were men, many of them married men, who a year and 
a half before, were in the depths of heathen darkness. The 
pupils were intent upon the object for which they came to 
the city, and the school was one in which Mr. Thomas felt 
a deep interest. Another dry season passed away, during 



THE HENTHADA NORMAL SCHOOL. 811 

whick time, aided by twenty imperfect assistants, nearly the 
whole of the two provinces were visited, and many new sta- 
tions formed or supplied with teachers. Thus the work pro- 
gressed, and in July 1857, nearly six hundred disciples were 
formed into sixteen little flocks, widely scattered over these 
two districts. Principally from these churches have been 
chosen the present normal school of upwards of sixty pupils. 
This school embraces a large proportion of younger lads, 
who, it is hoped, will remain in the school many terms, and 
acquire a comparatively thorough education ; but the elder 
pupils can remain in school but a short time, some of them 
having left their families and churches behind, while they 
study with the missionary one term. For the secular instruc- 
tion of these youths two good assistants were employed, 
while the missionary devoted his time almost exclusively to 
teaching the Holy Scriptures to the whole school ; upon him 
also devolved the " care of all the churches." 

Thus notwithstanding the dark clouds of trial and pecuni- 
ary difficulty which have rolled over the mission, God has 
net left it without witness of his blessing, in souls redeemed, 
sanctified, and saved. At the meeting of the churches in 
1858, in the Henlhada and Tharrawaddy districts, it appeared 
that one hundred and fifty adult believers had been baptized ; 
that eight new churches had been formed ; that another man 
had been ordained to the work of the ministry ; and that 
schools were in operation in connection with nearly all the 
churches. Thus in this new mission of about four years 
standing, there are thirty little churches with an aggregate 
of more than seven hundred believers. There are also a 
large number of those who worship with the Christians, but 
who have not yet been baptized ; and there are not only na- 
tive pastors and assistants in connection with all the flocks, 
but many who are endeavoring to raise up churches " in the 



312 PROME. 

regions beyond." On the very spot where, four years ago, 
the Burmans were cultivating their paddy fields at Henthada, 
there now stands the new modest dwelling of the missionary 
and his family. Associated with Mr. Thomas at Henthada is 
Mr. Crawley, who labors for the Burmans. Although, as we 
have before remarked, the success amongst them is not so 
great as with the Karens, yet the Lord has not withheld His 
blessing, but to the faithful labors of His servants does from 
time to time give them souls for their hire. 

Prome. 

In the early part of 1858, Mr. Kincaid returned from 
America and proceeded to Prome, where he and Mr. Simons 
have been laboring with much success. In February 1858, 
Mr. Kincaid wrote : " Since reaching Burmah, I have been 
almost constantly in the country among the villages to the 
east and south-east of Prome. In thirteen villages we have 
baptized disciples, but I have visited and preached in over 
forty villages, seven of which were entirely Karen, the 
others Burman. I found many earnest inquirers, and some 
nine or ten who give evidence of saving faith in Christ, and 
will before long be baptized. A few days since I baptized a 
young Burman of great promise. For ten years he studied 
in one of the most celebrated schools in Ava, and then be- 
came the head of a monastery, built and sustained by the 
population of four villages. It was one of the largest estab- 
lishments in this province. More than a year ago, he first 
heard the gospel from one of our native Christians: he 
ordered the man to be driven from the monastery, but not 
long after heard again, and then was more mild, and was 
smitten by the perseverance and kindliness of this Chris- 
tian man. He took some small parts of the New Testament, 
and read and continued to read, and soon the light began to 



CONVERSION OF A YOUXG BUEMAN PEIEST. 313 

dawn upon his mind ; he proclaimed to the priests under 
him, the wonderful truths revealed. Some months passed, 
and he began to see the inconsistency of his position, and 
boldly threw aside his priestly robes, and proclaimed him- 
self a disciple of Christ. The people of those villages 
were amazed as they listened to the doctrines preached by 
this young man, before whom, for five years, they had bowed, 
and whom they had called their Lord and Master. He is 
profoundly taught in the -principles of Buddhism ; has a 
clear understanding, and speaks with great fluency and 
power ; he is now living with one of our most distinguished 
native preachers, and is giving himself to the study of the 
New Testament. ATe trust he is raised up for some great 
and good work. In one of our Prome villages, nine have 
been baptized within a few days ; in two Burman villages 
there are eleven candidates for baptism ; seven Karens have 
been baptized, and six or seven more give evidence of faith 
in Christ. This people are found in great numbers in this 
province and further north along the eastern side of the 
Yoma mountains. In their traditions, manners, and customs, 
they are much like the Karens. I have not yet visited one 
half of our stations where the work has begun, but expect to 
do so before the rains begin. We have twelve native assist- 
ants, including one man at Ava, who are evangelists, and 
proclaim the gospel publicly, and from house to house. Some 
of them in the truest sense of the word are preachers, and 
all are fellow-laborers in the gospel. Besides these, we have 
two other men of great promise, who are now in their own 
localities spending all the time they can spare in going from 
house to house reading and teaching. It is only four years 
since the first blow was struck in this province ; all was then 
unbroken heathenism. "We have now seven Christian con- 
gregations widely separated, four Burman and three Karen, 

14 



314 PROGRESS IN THE DISTRICT. 

in many other cases we have one, two, and three converts in 
a place, indications of much fruit. After much thought and 
prayerful deliberation, Mr. Simons and I have resolved to 
dismiss none of our native laborers, even if obliged to effect 
a loan to meet the expense. The state of feeling in many 
parts of this district, both among Burmans and Karens, and 
I may add among the Khyens also, is very encouraging ; 
there is a spirit of inquiry unusual, especially among the 
Burmans. 

Mr. Simons, writing in August, 1S58, gives the following 
interesting particulars. "Besides the three assistants at 
Thayet, six others are employed, three of whom give their 
services gratuitously in preaching occasionally, as lay-mem- 
bers do in Christian lands. There are also a few promising 
young men coming forward who are employed as school-teach- 
ers and colporteurs. We try to enlist into the service of doing 
good as many as we can. There was a female prayer-meeting 
at our house yesterday, and one of the females, of more than 
common intelligence, came to me for some tracts for a relative 
living some distance off; she did not want large books, but 
small tracts which they could easily read and understand, 
such as 'The Glad Tidings,' 'Investigation/ and 'Father's 
Advice,' also the 'Mother's Book.' We give tracts to all 
who wish them, and portions of Scripture, such as ' The Life 
of Christ,' 'Digest,' and Psalms, to the more intelligent of 
the applicants. The New Testament is given to individuals 
on their becoming members of the church, and the whole 
Bible in quarto form to the assistants who preach. 

" A lay member, a farmer at Enmah, some distance from 
Prome, came to me some time ago, and said he wished to 
possess the whole Bible. I told him that as it was an expen- 
sive book, we gave it only to the preachers. He replied that 
he did not consider himself a preacher ; but he could say 



RANGOON. 315 

that he could not live if he did not make known to his relatives 
what he knew of the religion of Jesus Christ : of course I 
gave him one. Two female relatives of his were baptized 
lately, and others are favorably disposed." 

Rangoon. 

The work at Rangoon seems to have been uninterruptedly 
prospered since the time of the Annexation. Mr. Stevens, 
who has for long labored with such stedfastness in the Burman 
department of the mission both at Maulmain and subsequently 
at Rangoon, sent us the following interesting account of 
Moung-Thet-nau, one of the Burman preachers. He writes : 
" Moung-Thet-nau I regard as an assistant of more than 
ordinary value, alike for the correctness of his Scriptural 
knowledge, his experimental acquaintance with divine truth, 
the practical turn of his mind, his commanding influence, and 
the apparent sincerity and fulness of his devotion to the work 
of the Lord — all which point him out to my mind as peculiarly 
fitted to sustain the pastoral relation. I was unusually inter- 
ested in the account he gave me of his conversion, and as I 
have no doubt you will also be, I will give you the principal 
facts. 

" He had heard of one of his friends intending to become 
a Christian. He visited him for the purpose of dissuading 
him from a step which, he represented, would bring dis- 
grace on himself and his friends. That friend, as they com- 
menced conversation, handing him a little tin box contain- 
ing prepared lime used in chewing betel-nut, asked the 
question, whether that little box could have made itself? 
'By no means,' was the reply. ' How then could this great 
world have come of itself?' The truth thus simply sug- 
gested, became like a barbed arrow in him. Night and day 
thinking of it he found no rest, because he could not tell 



316 BUSMAN PEE AC HER, MOUNG-THET-NAU. 

whence came this world. At length, returning to his friend, 
he asked for a tract, yet dared not allow any of his acquaint- 
ances to see him with it, but sought a private room where he 
could read it unobserved. On opening the tract, the first 
words which met his eye were the first of Genesis, ' In the 
beginning G-od created the heavens and the earth.' They 
came as a flash of light upon his soul, and he was instantly 
absorbed in the thought. Then, said he, God is first and all 
things from Him ! That is the truth. From that moment 
he was fully satisfied that the book of the missionaries was 
the true one. He immediately sought out the preacher, 
from whom he obtained a full account of Christ, which 
revealed to him the wonders of Grod's love. He received 
the gospel with all gladness, and without the least hesitation 
his resolution was at once taken to be baptized. For this 
purpose it was necessary for him to go to Akyab, as there 
was no missionary or native pastor in Ramree where he then 
resided. He told his wife of his intention ; but as he knew 
it would be a terrible blow to her, added, that he would not 
subject her to the shame of being the wife of a Christian if 
she were determined not to be so ; and gave her her choice, 
wishing her to decide within four days, when an opportunity 
offered for him to go to Akyab, whether she would remain 
with him or not. If she would consent to remain, he prom- 
ised to be to her a faithful husband. If she chose to leave 
him he would put no obstacle in her way, allowing her to 
take all the property, he leaving with only the clothes he 
had on his back. She heard his proposition in silence and in 
tears. The fourth day at length arived, and not a word 
had she spoken in answer to his proposition, only showing by 
her tears the depth of her feelings ; when he told her the 
time had come for him to leave, and he must know her de- 
cision. She answered she would not forsake him, With 



&IS CONVERSION. 817 

a light heart he left for Akyab, sought the house of the mis- 
sionary, the late Mr. Ingalls, and immediately asked for 
baptism. Mr. Ingalls of course hesitated, and the suit was 
so earnestly pressed from day to day, that he thought the 
man must be actuated by some worldly motive, and it was 
not until a month had elapsed that, being satisfied of the sin- 
cerity of the candidate, and the reality of his conversion, he 
administered to him the ordinance. Moung-Thet-nau's sub- 
sequent course has corresponded, as far as I can learn, with 
the hopes excited by such an experience, and, as it seems to 
me, we may reasonably hope from him the usefulness which 
belongs to a consistent minister of the gospel. Such evident 
marks of the Spirit's work are peculiarly encouraging to our 
hearts, amid the general indifference and opposition of the 
Burmans to our message of love." 

On the 31st March, 1858, the Karen mission at Rangoon 
sustained a severe loss in the death of Mr. Vinton, who for 
more than twenty-five years had devoted all the remarkable 
powers of his mind and body to the evangelization of this 
people. The first portion of his missionary life was spent 
at Maulmain and in the country round, and there he was 
greatly blessed in gathering many souls to Christ. He also 
made extensive evangelistic tours, and finally, after the war 
in 1852, proceeded to Rangoon, where in the first year he 
baptized no less than five hundred Karen believers. At 
Kemmendine, a suburb of Rangoon, Mr. Vinton formed a 
most interesting central Karen station ; Mr. Brayton labor- 
ing with him for the Pwo Karens. Mrs. Vinton and Mrs. 
Brayton, assisted by native teachers, had a large school of 
nearly one thousand pupils, and during the rainy season, 
when prevented from itinerating, Mr. Vinton would instruct 
in his verandah a class o£ more than fifty young men in the 
Holy Scriptures, who at the close of the rains would go forth 



318 DEATH OF ME. VINTON. 

as teachers and evangelists in the villages around. In 1856, 
Mr. Vinton had, connected with this station, forty-two Karen 
churches, and Mr. Brayton four Pwo Karen churches ; num- 
bering about two thousand four hundred members ; support- 
ing thirty-nine native preachers, and thirty-six village 
schools ; building their own school-houses and chapels ; and 
contributing six hundred rupees a year to the Normal or 
High School at Kemmendine. And when the Missionary 
Board were in pecuniary difficulties, and means were want- 
ing at home, the Karens came forward and voluntarily 
assumed the responsibilities which had been necessarily 
incurred for the erection of the dwelling-houses for the mis* 
sionaries and school-houses for the children. 

Mr. Yinton in writing home in March 1857, of the great 
Association meeting north of Shwaygyeen said: "The 
churches in this Association are included within very narrow 
limits, and embrace but a very small part of this great field. 
So, in the outset, it was in Rangoon and Bassein ; and, I may 
add, so it is now. 

" When the work first commenced, everything for a time, 
within a given limit, went with a rush. (It was different in 
Maulmain and Tavoy.) Beyond this limit, little was attempt- 
ed for the conversion of the heathen for the next twenty 
years. On coming to Rangoon, I was surprised to find that 
the Christians occupied a district only some fifteen to twenty 
miles from north to south, and from thirty to forty miles 
from east to west. 

" All beyond these limits was given up to the dominion 
of heathenism, and nothing was being attempted for the great 
masses that were pursuing their downward way to death. 
In 1850, it was the universal opinion that the Karen Mission 
had reached its culminating point. From 1852 to 1855, God 
was pleased to grant us great enlargement; three new dis- 



GROWTH OF THE MISSION. 319 

tricts were taken possession of in the name of the Lord ; a 
large number of new churches constituted ; and more than 
twelve hundred baptized. During the past year I am pained 
to say the native preachers have again shown a disposition 
to make themselves comfortable, and little has been done to 
advance the interests of the cause and save souls. This is 
the greatest trial of missionary life. The anguish of my 
spirit is so great, that if Grod does not send deliverance, I 
feel I cannot long survive, nor do I wish it, for if to live be 
not Christ, life itself becomes a burden. Since returning 
from Shwaygyeen we have attended the meetings of our 
two associations. Both meetings were blessed to some of 
our native preachers, I trust, and there appears to be a 
waking up ; but whether -the movement will prove perman- 
ent, remains to be seen. Of one thing I am confident, and 
that is that spasmodic religion will never convert the world. 
It is so unlike God, so unlike the primitive type of Chris- 
tianity, and so ill-adapted to the present condition of the 
world. To-day heaven and hell are great realities, to-mor- 
row mere fictions of imagination. To-day, knowing the 
terrors of the Lord, we persuade men ; to-morrow say, ' Am 
I my brother's keeper ?' and no man cares for his neighbor's 
soul. Nothing but the continuous out pouring of the Holy 
Spirit, and adding ' to the churches daily such as shall be 
saved,' will hasten the coming of the Redeemer's Kingdom. 
" After the meeting of the Maubee Association, I pre- 
pared to cross the Yomah mountains, at a point a little north 
of Pegu ; but my guide took me a long way to the north, and 
we crossed at a point midway between Shwaygyeen and 
Toungoo. The way for elephants was so difficult, that at 
one time we thought we should have to retrace our steps. 
I found, however, a large number of Karen villages that 
had never heard the first word on the subject of tho Chris- 



320 SPASMODIC RELIGION. 

tian religion, and had never seen the face of a white man 
The Karens received us with the greatest cordiality ; listened 
to everything we had to say with the greatest interest; and 
promised to receive teachers, build chapels, &c. . Here then 
is a new field of equal promise to those of Shwaygyeen and 
Toungoo, at the outset. Shall it be overlooked ? I know of 
three other fields of equal promise, which I visited between 
1836 and 1842, that are not yet occupied, because the means 
at our command have been unequal to the undertaking 
The prospect now is that we shall die before the work is 
half completed, and before this great field shall have even 
been half surveyed. ...At times I have seen the cloud as 
big as a man's hand, and have not doubted that the rain of 
grace would begin and that the latter would be more glorious 
than the former rain. 

" I had written thus far when a letter from one of our 
young men, who is in the employ of the Superintendent of 
teak forests, and now on the mountains at the back of Prome, 
comes in saying ; that the Karens upon those mountains are 
very numerous, have never heard anything on the subject of 
the Christian religion, listen with the greatest interest and 
are anxious to have teachers sent among them, &c. Here 
then is another field to be supplied. What is to be done ? 
Are these Macedonian cries from so many parts of the Karen 
jungle never to be heard ? Now that there is no part of the 
Karen world to which the gospel message has been sent, but 
thousands and tens of thousands have turned to the Lord ; 
now that the occupancy of Shwaygyeen has resulted in the 
conversion of from one to two thousand, of Rangoon from 
two to three thousand, of Bassein from five to ten thousand, 
and an equal number at Toungoo ; shall it be known in the 
Judgment, that not only the three fields brought to the notice 
of the Christian world in 1836, and following years, were 



MR. vinton's appeal. 321 

long left uncultivated, but that these new openings were left 
disregarded ? But language fails me. My hand is tremu- 
lous with emotion. My eyes rim down with tears. My heart 
is full, and in the anguish of my soul I say ; God, how 
will Thy professing people answer to Thee for the loss of 
these tens of thousands of priceless souls, to whom thou hast 
sent messages of eternal love ? What will they say when in 
the light of the Judgment, it is seen and known that each 
messenger of mercy sent, gathered from one thousand to 
five thousand precious souls into the garner of our dear Lord, 
and yet they refused to multiply the number of those heav- 
enly messengers, and even refused to sustain those who are 
pouring out their life-blood in this more than angelic ser- 
vice ?" 

Such were the fervent aspirations of this man of God ! 
"Well might one of his brethren say of him, " We look around 
in vain for one to fill his place ! He was a man of ardent 
piety, untiring zeal, great practical wisdom, and great physi- 
cal energies, and as a successful preacher in the Karen 
language, he stood unrivalled." While another adds, "Who 
can take his place and do his work ? No one man could do 
it, and there is not even one to spare from other fields." 

We have the following letter from Mr. Kincaid, which 
gives an interesting description of his character and labors. 
28th April, 1858 ; " On the 8th of this month I reached 
Thayet from Ava, and the first word uttered by the native 
Christians was, ' Teacher Yinton is dead !' The shock was 
so great I could hardly speak for more than an hour. 
As soon as I had rallied a little, I went off to the military can- 
tonments and called on a pious officer to learn if indeed this 
was true. ' It is too true,' he replied, ' Major Wheeler has 
just come up from Rangoon and confirmed all.' That night 
I left for Prome, and the next day about noon arrived. Bro- 

14* 



322 HIS DEATH, 

ther Simons and the disciples were deeply afflicted in view 
of this sad bereavement, but few particulars had yet reached 
Prome. Soon after a steamer came up having on board 
the Commissioner, Major Phayre, and several other officers. 
From them I learned many facts ; all were at the funeral, 
some of them were present when he died. His death they 
said, was beautiful, so calm, so peaceful, so much like going 
home. Without a struggle or a sigh, he fell asleep. Such 
was the language of those who stood by and saw this man of 
God as the curtains of death were gathered slowly round him. 
A person in British Burmah has never died more deeply or 
universally lamented. As Major Phayre said, 'His death is 
a calamity to the country : who can supply his place in these 
provinces V 

" His influence among the Karens was remarkable. In 
preaching he labored in season and out of season. He was 
exceeding zealous of the honor and glory of God, and hence 
his mind dwelt intensely on the ministry which God had 
given him to fulfil, to win souls to Christ; and not only to 
win them to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, but to lead 
them on to higher attainments in the divine life ; to make 
them feel and comprehend, that they were redeemed unto 
God for great and noble purposes to be fellow laborers with 
God. Beyond all other men I have ever known, he had the 
talent of winning the confidence and love of the natives. 
They saw that he had no interest separate from theirs. He 
prayed for them as few men can pray. He preached as few 
men can preach. His heart was in all he did. The sick, the 
afflicted, the oppressed, soon learned to seek his aid and 
counsel, and in him all found a friend, and if not relieved, 
went back comforted. His influence among the Karen Chris- 
tians was wonderful. They saw that he willingly sacrificed 
all his great powers of body and mind to their temporal and 



HIS ZEAL AND LABORS. 323 

spiritual interests, and they were ready to make any sacrifice 
for him. He was careful to deal justly and kindly with the 
natives, and hence among the heathen he was honored and 
revered. I have known him for twenty-three years, and 
every succeeding year has only increased my respect for the 
purity of his life and my admiration of his untiring devotion 
to the great work for which he came to this heathen land. 

" All the gifts which God gave him were employed in 
evangelizing the heathen, and in planting and training Chris- 
tian churches. Besides those he raised up in the Maulmain 
province, here in the Rangoon province are about forty 
churches planted through his labors. They are also raised 
to a state of efficiency, such as has rarely been equalled in 
modern times. The amount of labor which our departed 
brother has performed during the past six years, since he 
came to Eangoon in 1852, is amazing ; and most of the time, 
under difficulties that few men could have endured. For six 
months he has travelled over a district as large as one of the 
New England States, without roads, amidst a people poor and 
ignorant. Now forty-two chapels and thirty school-houses 
have been opened ; and between eight and nine thousand 
worshippers meet in these chapels every Lord's day. About 
one hundred pastors, evangelists, and school teachers, have 
been educated and trained for the work. 

" The very means for travelling and for teaching have been 
raised in a large degree by his individual efforts. Imagine 
if you can, the amount of labor and privation to accomplish 
such a work, in such a climate, and under such circumstances. 
He has fallen as a noble general amidst the trophies of vic- 
tory, and thousands of Karens weep around his grave. A 
large number are now beside me talking of their beloved 
teacher, some of them weeping because they will see his face 
no more. 



324: MOURNING AT HIS DECEASE. 

" Just before sunset, I preached from Acts, ' In the last 
days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh.' 
We have had meetings every morning and evening for four 
days in this chapel. Four villages are in sight. Mrs.Vin'on 
has had a female prayer-meeting in the middle of the day, 
above a hundred females and children present. for a time 
of refreshment from the presence of the Lord ! Mrs. Vinton 
will not leave the field of her husband's labors, and this in no 
small degree soothes the heart of this afflicted people. That 
this bereavement may be sanctified to us all, should be our 
earnest prayer. During brother Vinton's last tour he visited 
some new fields, and among others was on the mountains 
between the Line river and the Sitang Valley. The heat was 
fearfully oppressive, and for four or five nights he had to sleep 
in a dense bamboo jungle, and one day rode not less than forty 
miles on an elephant across burning paddy fields. Still when 
he came home Le was apparently well and in a delightful 
frame of mind. He went about giving directions, and super- 
intending a large amount of work which was necessary to be 
done before the rains set in, and he was intending to leave 
in four or five days on another tour, on which his heart was 
much set, but in two days he was taken ill with fever. Still 
he was able to walk about the house and to go from one room 
to another, and was fall of hope that he should soon be able 
to go into the mountains again to accomplish the work on which 
his heart was bent. On the fifth day, he was worse, and on 
the seventh he breathed his last without a struggle, and with 
the same expression of calm and holy joy upon his countenance. 

During his last tour he had written Mrs. Vinton several 
brief letters, all breathing in a remarkable degree an intense 
desire for the salvation of souls, and a readiness to depart 
and be with Christ. The five young men who went with 
him have all been ill ; and one of them has since followed 



HIS LAST TOUR. 325 

him to that rest which belongs to the people of God The 
elephant which he rode was also taken ill, and is now blind. 
The young men he left in the mountains to teach the people 
to read, and to instruct them in the gospel, fled down to the 
plains when they heard of their beloved teacher's death. 
The Karens are overwhelmed with sorrow. One of the 
pastors after the sermon last evening, addressed the congre- 
gation in a deeply interesting narrative of their teacher's 
labors, and closed by urging them to earnest prayer for a 
large measure of the Holy Spirit. He said, ' Our teacher 
pleased God, and so God took him. Now what we want is a 
man like our teacher Yinton, and God alone can send such a 
man. We must all pray that God may pour out His Holy 
Spirit upon us, and then we shall please God, and He will 
send us the teacher we need.' 

" Had you known our brother and labored with him as I 
have done, you would have said, ' Why was he taken V The 
Karens seem to understand this ; they say, ' He was taken 
because he pleased God.' " 

Mr. Stevens gives the following interesting and affecting 
account of the last hours : 

" You are prepared to sympathise, I know, in the heavy 
bereavement which has befallen us in the sudden decease of 
Mr. Yinton, of which you no doubt heard by the last mail. 
On the evening of the 23rd March, he reached home after a 
tour among the mountain Karens, the last two days of which 
he was exposed incessantly to the burning sun, with but a 
slight protection, which together with the fatigue of riding 
on an elephant induced a fever. But the remedies which 
were resorted to seemed to act so favorably, that his phys- 
ician thought him in no danger, nor was he undeceived until 
the very night preceding the morning of feis decease. Dur- 
ing his illness he spoke but little of himself, seeming to 



326 . HIS LAST HOUES. 

have no apprehension of his approaching end. On the con- 
trary, in reply to a remark of Mrs. Vinton, inquiring if he 
did not think his work was done, ' No,' he said, ' I feel that I 
may yet live these twenty years.' And such was the im- 
pression which his ordinary appearance in health would be 
likely to produce on any one. Disease, however, had taken 
a relentless hold on him, and its work was rapid. As his end 
approached, and it became manifest to all that the hand of 
death was on him, we were glad to observe that conscious- 
ness was still perfect, and although unable clearly to articu- 
late, in reply to the question, ' Is the name of Jesus precious 
to you ?' he distinctly answered, ' Yes, yes,' and soon 
after, turning himself over, as if to adjust himself for death, 
he rapidly sank away, leaving attendant friends, who had 
been hastily summoned to his bed side, in all but mute 
amazement, as though they had heard a voice speaking to 
them, ' Be still, and know that I am God.' 

" This sad event was scarcely less a shock to us, than it 
undoubtedly has been and yet will be to friends at a distance. 
For he had been so hale and strong, with such evident signs 
of fitness for yet many years of labor, that certainly any one 
of our circle would have been selected by us as the next vic- 
tim for the Destroyer before him. But he is gone ! and his 
death has left a wide chasm in our ranks. Mrs. Yinton bears 
up remarkably under the stroke, for which indeed she seems 
to have been specially prepared by a kind providence, in a 
presentiment which she had had, even before Mr. Yinton 
came down from the jungle, that he was not long to continue 
with her. The Lord, we trust, will now be her stay, an 
ever-present help in trouble. 

" It was affecting to observe how the Karens were exer- 
cised under this h^avy affliction. All seemed astounded as 
though they could not believe their own eyes, when they saw 



DEEP IMPRESSIONS. 327 

the robust form of their revered teacher lying lifeless before 
them. Many wept, of whom some, his more immediate co- 
workers in the kingdom of Christ, remembering the hand of 
God, seemed lost in the inquiry, ' Why has he done it?' 
while yet they would acknowledge with Abraham, ' The 
Judge of all the earth must do right.' Perhaps by taking 
from them one on whom, in an eminent degree, they were 
accustomed to lean, God intends to draw them more fully to 
stay themselves on His everlasting strength. Mr. Brayton 
too, the more immediate associate of our deceased brother, 
especially needs our sympathy and prayers. For under the 
crushing weight of the accumulated affairs that will now 
devolve on him, I am sure he feels that none but an Almighty 
arm can keep him from sinking. 

" How comforting it is to reflect, in view of this and sim- 
ilar dispensations of Providence, so seriously, as we should 
say, affecting the prosperity of the missionary cause, which 
depends for success so much on continuous effort, that the 
enterprise originated with Him, the instruments He pro- 
vides ; so that how frail soever they are, and however 
rapidly they fail in the using, He remains the same, and His 
resources are infinite ; and He will continue to provide and 
adapt the instruments to the successive stages of the work, 
until the grand result He aims at is attained." 

"We have thus endeavored to survey this field which the 
Lord has blessed. Our readers will judge if, viewed as a 
whole, the work in Burmah has not (as we stated at the 
commencement) realized the New Testament idea of a Chris- 
tian mission. The broad outlines of such a mission are seen 
on the very surface of the Acts and the Epistles of the 
Apostles. 

The first opening of the gospel message after the ascen- 



328 THE LORD REIGNETH. 

sion was Peter's sermon, ending with, " Therefore let all the 
house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that 
same Jesus whom ye have crucified both Lord and Christ." 
(Acts ii. 36.) Thus he again addressed the people, when 
they marvelled at the miracle wrought on the lame man (iii. 
12 — 16) ; thus he addressed the council (iv. 12, v. 31) ; and 
these were the words spoken to Cornelius (x. 36 — 13, and 
xi. 14), whereby he and all his house should be saved ; thus 
Philip preached at Samaria (viii. 5) ; and to the Eunuch (viii. 
35) ; and thus the scattered disciples as they traveled abroad 
11 preached the Lord Jesus'' (xi. 20). Beaten by order of 
the Jewish council, and commanded not to speak in the name 
of Jesus, the Apostles daily in the temple and in every 
house " ceased not to teach and to preach Jesus Christ" (v. 
40, 42) ; and when secular work pressed upon them in min- 
istering to the poor, they sought to be relieved, that they 
might give themselves continually " to prayer and to the 
ministry of the word" (vi. 4). 

Immediately on his conversion Paul " preached Christ" 
at Damascus, (ix. 20 ;) and afterwards from Antioch to Phil- 
ippi ; from Corinth to Athens ; from Ephesus to Rome ; to 
the Jews and the Gentiles ; to the populace and to individual 
inquirers ; to the Roman Governor and to King Agrippa : 
this was his message. " From Jerusalem round about unto 
Illyricum he fully preached the gospel of Christ." (Rom. 
xv. 19.) It was evidently his habit thus to preach : " I de- 
termined," he said, " not to know anything among you save 
Jesus Christ and Him crucified." (1 Cor. ii. 2.) At Thes- 
salonica, " Paul, as his manner tvas, went in unto them, and 
three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures, 
opening and alleging that Christ must needs have suffered 
and risen again from the dead : and that this same Jesus 
whom I preach unto you is Christ," (Acts xvji. 2, 3.) And 



APOSTOLIC PEEACHING. 329 

in the full anticipation of his coming trials, he said to the 
elders at Ephesus, ' None of these things move me, neither 
count I my life dear unto me, so that I might finish my 
course with joy, and the ministry which I have received of 
the Lord Jesus to testify the gospel of the grace of God." 
(xx. 24.) On this gospel his confidence reposed : " We 
preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block, to 
the Greeks foolishness ; but to us who are called, both Jews 
and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of 
God." (1 Cor. i, 22.) " I am not ashamed of the gospel of 
Christ : for it is the power of God unto salvation to every 
one that believeth." (Eom. i. 16.) 

The work of the preachers was the Ministry of He concili- 
ation : as it is written : " Now then we are ambassadors for 
Christ, as though God did beseech you by as, we pray you 
in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." (2 Cor. v. 20.) 
The first proclamation of the gospel was at Jerusalem, accor- 
ding to the commandment, (Luke xxiv. 47 ;) but the disci- 
ples were appointed to be witnesses unto the Lord, both in 
Jerusalem and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and to the 
uttermost parts of the earth,. (Acts i. 8.) From Jerusalem 
therefore the word went forth to all the greatest cities of the 
age. But it was not confined to them. As Jesus Himself 
went about all the cities and villages teaching and preaching, 
(Matt. ix. 35,) so his faithful followers in the same manner, 
as debtors both to the wise and to the unwise, preached his 
gospel to the neglected poor of all the countries they visited. 
" Philip passing through Azotus preached in all the cities 
till he came to Csesarea." (Acts viii. 40.) Peter passed 
throughout all quarters till he came down also to the saints 
which dwelt at Lydda. (ix. 32.) They that were scattered 
abroad upon the persecution at Jerusalem, " went every- 
where preaching the word." (viii. 4.) When Paul and Bar- 



330 APOSTOLIC PLANS. 

nabas departed from Antioch to the work unto which the 
Holy Ghost had called them, (xii. 2.) they travelled to 
Seleucia and thence to Cyprus, and " went through the island 
to Paphos," (xii. 4 — 6 ;) preached in Antioch in Pisidia ; 
and "published the word of the Lord throughout all the 
region," (49,) thence travelling and preaching from city to 
city, they preached the gospel not only in Lystra and Derbe, 
but also in " the region that lieth round about," (xiv. 6, 7 ;) 
and subsequently " they passed through Pisidia," (xiv. 24:) 
afterward Paul went " throughout Phrygia and the region of 
Galatia," (xvi. 6;) and again a second time went "over all 
the country of Galatia and Phrygia." (xviii. 23.) In the 
same manner "he passed through the upper coasts" ere he 
"came to Ephesus," (xix. 1 ;) and "not alone at Ephesus, 
but almost throughout all Asia, persuaded and turned away 
much people," (xix. 26;) and so when about to depart on his 
second journey to Macedonia, "he went over those parts and 
gave them much exhortation" before he sailed for Greece. 
(xx. 2.) 

These are sufficient indications of the plans of the Apostles : 
how God "made manifest the savor of his knowledge by 
them in every place." (2 Cor. ii. 14.) It was a vast circuit 
traversed by Paul, and others doubtless labored withunweary* 
ing zeal. His journey by Illyricum was immense. He tra- 
versed great regions, inhabited and uninhabited, full of "perils 
in the city, in the wilderness, and in the deep." (2 Cor. xi. 
26.) The fruits in all places were alike, a great variety 
of men heard the truth. Jews, Samaritans, Ephesians, 
Corinthians, Athenians, Romans, the islanders of Cyprus and 
of Crete. There were votaries of an idolatrous superstition 
at Corinth; Roman colonists at Philippi; Jewish priests full 
of envy, (Acts v. 17,) of whom nevertheless " a great compaDy 
were obedient to the faith;" (vi. 7,) and barbarians at Melita. 



APOSTOLIC SUCCESS. 331 

But tlie same simple gospel was addressed to all. The 
Apostle testified that " the grace of God that bringeth salva- 
tion hath appeared unto all men, teaching us that, denying 
ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, right- 
eously, and godly in this present world; looking for that 
blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and 
our Saviour Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us that he 
might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto .himself 
a peculiar people zealous of good works." (Titus ii. 11, 14.) 
And this purpose was largely accomplished. " Great grace" 
was on the church at Jerusalem: (Acts iv. 33,) the faith of 
the Roman believers was " spoken of throughout the world;" 
(Rom. i. 8.) Paul thanked God on every remembrance of 
those at Phillippi; (Phil. i. 3 ;) and remembered without ceas- 
ing the Thessalonians in their " work of faith, and labor of love, 
and patience of hope, in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight 
of God and our Father;" (1 Thess. i. 3.) The scattered 
strangers whom Peter addressed, (1 Peter i. 8,) though they 
had not seen the Lord, loved him ; and believing, rejoiced 
with joy unspeakable and full of glory. The church at Smyrna 
in its tribulation yet was " rich" (Rev. ii. 9 ;) and the church 
of Philadelphia had " kept the word of patience" amidst much 
surrounding evil. There were degrees of grace and holiness, 
and probably then, as now, very few eminent believers. "We 
know that there were corrupt practices ; evil men crept in 
unawares ; some turned aside from the faith ; and there were 
old remains of former superstitious habits ; but the spirit of 
the Lord made the preaching of the word effectual ; quali- 
fied native evangelists, pastors, and bishops, as Philip, Apollos, 
Timothy, and Titus ; animated each church to strive to send 
the gospel to regions beyond. (2 Cor. x. 15, 16.) 

We have seen in these sketches, a history not dissimilar : 
and shall we say that we are straitened in the Lord ; that He 



332 APOSTOLIC SUCCESS. 

cannot extend the experience of this mission, and cause 
others to share its fervor and its reward 1 

Well may we " think on these things !" "We greatly need 
a quickened zeal, a stronger faith, a firmer confidence. If 
the love of Christ were shed abroad in our hearts by the 
Holy Spirit, animating us to prayer, causing us to count our- 
selves, and all that we have, as His alone, we should not 
labor languidly any longer ; but sowing in hope, should look 
for that promised time when not only all the tribes of Bur- 
mah, but all mankind shall bow before the Saviour's feet ; 
when every hand shall bring its willing tribute; and every 
lip utter its song of praise ; and when holiness, purity, and 
love, shall mantle, like a robe, the universe of God, and the 
whole earth be filled with his glory. 



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J. B. Jeter, D.D. 

The Life and Writings of Rev. A. Broaddus, . 1 00 

Campbellism examined. i2mo., . . 1 00 

The Mirror. i6mo., ..... 60 

Rev. J. D. Fulton. 

The Roman Catholic Element. i2mo., . . 1 00 

John Clarke Marshman. 

Life and Times of Carey Marshman & Ward, . 5 00 

Edward B. Underhill. 

Struggles and Triumphs of Religious Liberty, . 75 

Rev. Francis Mason. 

Memoir of Mrs. Helen M. Mason. i2mo., . 60 

William Dean, D.D. 

The China Mission. 1 2mo., . . . 1 00 



StjelSistc atc& di^'i SJifc 



Mrs. Thomas Geldart. 

Daily Thoughts for a Child. i6mo., 
Truth is Everything. i6mo., 
Emilie the Peacemaker. i6mo., 
Sunday Morning Thoughts. i6mo., 
Sunday Evening Thoughts. i6mo., 



5° 
5° 
5° 
5° 
5° 



S. G. Goodrich (Peter Parley). 

The Cottage Library. 10 vols., i8mo., 
Picture Play Books. 4to., . 



3 75 
75 



Francis L. Hawks, D.D., LL.D. 

Richard the Lion Hearted. i6mo., 
Oliver Cromwell. i6mo., 



75 

75 



Aunt Mary's Stories. 12 vols., . 
The Little Commodore. i6mo., 
A Treasury of Pleasure Books. Gilt, 
Indestructible Pleasure Books, each, 
The Illuminated Linen Primer, . 
The Farmer Boy's Alphabet, 
The Scripture Alphabet, . 
Little Annie's Ladder to Learning., 





3 °° 




75 




1 50 




20 




20 




20 




20 




40 



SJjel&iw cm& d®J§ SJ84* 




John F. Stoddard, A.M. 




Juvenile Mental xA.rithmetic, . 


12 


American Intellectual Arithmetic, 


20 


Practical Arithmetic, ..... 


40 


Philosophical Arithmetic, .... 


60 


Key to Intel, and Prac. Arithmetic, 


50 



Stoddard & Henkle (Prof. W. D.) 

Elementary Algebra, .... 
University Algebra, .... 



75 
5° 



J. Russell Webb, A.M. 

Normal Primer, .... 

Primary Lessons, a Series of three Cards, 
The Word Method Primer, 
Normal Reader, No. 1, 
Normal Reader, No. 2, 
Normal Reader, No. 3, 
Normal Reader, No. 4, 
Normal Reader, No. 5, 



s 

1 00 

15 

12 

25 
38 

7S 



Edward Hazen, A.M. 

The Speller and Definer, 



. . • • 


20 


Complete, 


20 


Part 1st, 288 Cuts, . 


10 


Part 2d, 265 Cuts, . 


12 



Rev. Louis L. Noble. 

Life and Works of Thomas Cole. i2mo., . . l 25 
The Lady i\ngeline and other Poems. i2mo., . 75 

Rev. Sidney Dyer. 

Songs and Ballads for the Household. i2mo., . 75 

Mrs. Mary A. Denison. 

Gracie Amber, a Novel. i2mo., . . 1 25 

Harriet E. Bishop. 

Floral Home; or, First Years of Minnesota, . 1 00 

Rev. Joseph Barnard. 

Wisdom, &c, of the Ancient Philosophers, . . 75 

Mrs. A. Lincoln Phelps. 

Ida Norman. Illustrated. i2mo., . . . 1 25 

David Millard. 

Travels in Egypt, Arabia Petrasa, &c. i2mo., . 1 00 

John Mcintosh. 

The North American Indians. 8vo., . . . 1 50 

Rev. William Arthur. 

Origin and Derivation of Family Names, . , 1 25 



Sftel&®ttt m& <&$♦'• 2M< 



Eliphalet Nott, D.D. 

Lectures on Temperance, izmo., 

Robert Turnbull, D.D. 

Life Pictures from a Pastor's note book, 

Rev. Matthew Mead. 

The Almost Christian. i8mo., . 

John Frost, LL.D. 

Wonders of History. 8vo., 

T. J. Farnham. 

California and Oregon. 8vo., 



• • 



oo 



1 oo 



45 



i 50 



Life of Spencer H. Cone, D.D., . 

The Life and Works of Lorenzo Dow, 

Father Clark, the Pioneer Preacher, 

Homoeopathic Practice, by M. Freleigh, M.D 

The Napoleon Dynasty. Illustrated, 8vo., 

Marble Worker's Manual, . 

Memoir of Thomas Spencer, 

The N. Y. Pulpit, Revival of 1858, . 

The Baptist Library. 8vo., sheep, 

The Living Epistle. Tyree, 

Rollin's Ancient History. 8vo., . 

The Words of Jesus and Faithful Promiser, 





• ! 2 5 




. 1 50 




63 


D., 


. 1 50 




2 50 




1 OO 




60 




1 OO 




3 5° 




60 




1 50 


N 


37 



Prof. Jean Gustave Keetels. 

A New Method of Learning the French Language, l oo 
A Collegiate Course in the French Language, . l oo 

Key to the New Method, 

Key to the Collegiate Course (in press). 

J. R. Loomis, D.D. 

Elements of Anatomy, Physiology, and Hygiene, . 75 

Elements of Geology, . . . . . 75 

Oliver B. Goldsmith. 

Copy Books in Five Numbers, each, . . . 12 

Gems of Penmanship, boards, . . .. . 2 00 

Double-Entry Book-keeping. 8vo., ... 75 



Exhibition Speaker, Fitzgerald, . 

Normal School Song Book, 

History of the United States, Peabody, 

Nelson's Copy Books, 5 numbers, each, 

United States Speller, Miles, 

Fitch's Mapping Plates, 

Parley's Geography, .... 

The University Drawing Book, . 



75 
38 

75 
10 
12 
30 
30 
3 5° 



* Sample copies of Sheldon & Co.'s School Books are sent to Teachers by mail 
for one half the prices annexed. 



HOUSEHOLD LIBRARY. 

Life and Martyrdom of Joan of Arc. By Michelet, 50 

Life of Robert Burns. By Thomas Carlyle, . 50 

Life and Teachings of Socrates. By George Grote, 50 

Life of Columbus. By Alphonse de Lamartine, . 50 

Life of Frederick the Great. By Lord Macaulay, 50 

Life of William Pitt. By Lord Macaulay, . . 50 

Life of Mahomet. By Gibbon, . . . 50 

Life of Luther. By Che v. Bunsen, . . . 50 

Life of Oliver Cromwell. By A. de Lamartine, . 50 

Life of Torquato Tasso. By G. H. WifFen, . 50 
Life of Peter the Great. Compiled by the Editor, 2 vols., 1 00 

Life of Milton. By Prof. Masson, . . . 50 
Life of Thomas A'Becket. By H. H. Milman, D.D., * 50 

Life of Hannibal. By Dr. Arnold, ... 50 

Life of Vittoria Colonna. By 50 

Life of Julius Csesar. By Henry G. Liddell, D.D., 50 
Life of Mary Stuart. By A. de Lamartine (in press). 




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